


(Not) just another day at the office

by Tooky86



Category: Ghostbusters (2016)
Genre: F/F, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-31
Updated: 2017-10-02
Packaged: 2018-11-07 10:02:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 23,162
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11056653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tooky86/pseuds/Tooky86
Summary: You moved to New York but you don't seem to fit in anywhere until you get a new job... as a Ghostbusters.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fanfiction, so feedback is greatly appreciated!
> 
> Special thanks to Holtzmann1998 for encouraging me to keep writing!

Manhattan, New York. The city of hope, dreams, crappy apartments and poorly paid jobs. When you left your home country, you didn’t expect to find the American dream, but you didn’t know that after six months, you’d be driving around on a moped, delivering Chinese food either.

While the people around you enjoy their sunny Saturday afternoon, you are send to an address you’ve never been before. You stop in front of a large building, an old firehouse. You take of your helmet and knock on the large wooden door.  
After a few minutes you knock again but there’s still no response. The food in your arms is getting cold so you push the door handle. The door swings open, revealing a big, empty garage.  
“Hello?” You take a few steps inside. You finally hear someone coming down the stairs.  
“Benny?” A woman with dark hair and glasses appear. “You’re never this fast! Did they put a rocket up your a…” She stops and looks at you. “You’re not Benny.” You hold up the brown paper bag.  
“Chinese food delivery.”  
The woman takes the bag from you and takes out a plastic container with soup. She studies it for a few seconds.  
“What is this?” she asks, looking at it from all different sides.  
“It’s our hot and sour shrimp soup.”  
“This actually has shrimps in it. And little pieces of vegetables.”  
“The chef almost messed it up, he gave me something that looked like dishwater but I told him I wouldn’t deliver that, so then he gave me proper soup.” The woman looked at you from head to toe.  
“Why?”  
“A happy customer is a happy delivery girl.” You reply with a big smile, holding out your hand and hoping that the crazy soup lady would pay you.  
“Yes of course, money! Just a sec.” She turns and walks to what you presume is the kitchen. While you wait, you look around the garage. There are tools all over the place. You pick up a wrench and place it back on the rack between the others.

Five screwdrivers, two hammers, four different sizes of pincers and about fifty screws and nails – that you put back in the box – later, you hear the woman yelling.  
“I’ll be right there! Some funny ass got ectoplasm all over my purse!” You don’t know what ectoplasm is, but it sounds gross. You wander around the garage a little further and find a desk. Or at least you think there’s a desk hidden beneath piles of paper, maps, books, a picture of a flying hotdog and a phone. Unconsciously you start straightening the papers and collecting paperclips until you see the wood of the tabletop appear again. You wonder why the desk is covered in coffee stains.  
“What are you doing?” You startle and drop the stapler you are holding. You turn and see the dark haired woman standing in the doorway, her shirt is covered in green goo.  
“I was just… I didn’t want to…” you realize you have no idea what you are doing.  
“What’s your name?”  
“Y/N.”  
“And you did all of this while I was in the kitchen?” She gestures to the desk and the garage, which looked a lot tidier then when you came in.  
“Yes. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have touched any of this. Please don’t call my boss.” You beg, you can’t afford to lose another job. To your surprise, she opens her cleaned up purse and takes out another $10.  
“Why don’t you come back Monday, when the rest of the team is here as well?” She hands you the money for the food and the generous tip. “Let’s say 11 o’clock?”  
“Okay.” You mumble. You walk to the door, not really sure what just happened.  
“Oh Y/N!”  
“Yes?”  
“If I were you, I wouldn’t leave my bike in the alley next to the building!” 

Monday morning at 10.30, you stand in front of the firehouse again. Before you can knock on the door, it swings open and the crazy soup lady welcomes you with a big smile.  
“You’re early. I like that.” She shakes your hand enthusiastically. “I think we haven’t been introduced properly. I am Abby Yates, scientist. Come in!” You follow her into the garage, this time there’s a car parked. When you take a closer look, you see that the roof is filled with high tech equipment and that there’s a ghost logo on the side door. But that’s not the most disturbing thing about it.  
“Is this a…”  
“A hearse. Or it used to be a hearse. Now it essential tool for our operations.” Abby says as if it’s normal to have a hearse as a company car.  
“What did I get myself into?” You ask yourself.  
“Guys! She’s here!” Abby yells. At the back of the garage, next to the coffee stained desk, is a folding table, surrounded by five chairs. One chair on one side, four on the opposite side.  
You turn when you hear people on the stairs. The first woman walks up to you, she has brown hair and a kind smile.  
“May I introduce you to Dr. Erin Gilbert, quantum physicist.” Behind her, a tall dark woman steps up. “Patty Tolan, our researcher and…” Abby looks around. “Where’s Holtz?”  
“Coming!” You hear someone scream from the floor above. Suddenly, another blonde woman slides down the fire pole and makes a perfect landing.  
“Jillian Holtzmann. Nuclear engineer, Virgo, glutenful and happy to meet you at last.”  
“Do we know each other?”  
“Not at all. I have never seen you in my life, don’t even know your name.”  
“You’re on fire.”  
“That’s nice of you to say so, but we just met.”  
“No really, you’re on fire!” you point to the back of her grease covered vest. Behind you, the woman named Erin shows up with a fire blanket, putting out the smoldering piece of clothing.  
“Happens all the time.” The blonde engineer smirks, not even a little shocked.  
“If we can stop messing around, we can start this job interview.” Abby says.  
“Job interview?” finally explaining the chairs and the presence of the four women.  
“Yes. We are looking for a new receptionist.”  
“We lost the other one, Kevin.” Erin sighs.  
“Oh I’m sorry… How did it happen?”  
“Hide and seek.”  
“Excuse me?”  
“We started a game of hide and seek about a week ago. We haven’t seen him ever since.”  
“So he’s not gone, you just can’t find him?”  
“He’s a champion.” Erin smiles. You can sense a weird form of pride in the way they talk about him.  
“What if he shows up again?”  
“Then you have a big puppy to play with.” Patty grins.  
“So Y/N, tell us something about yourself.” You hate that question because there’s nothing interesting to say about your life.  
“I um… moved to the US about six months ago. I had a couple of jobs but I never seem to fit in.” Your voice softens as you think you just blew your chance to get this job you never applied for in the first place.  
“Family?”  
“We don’t talk to each other anymore.” Hoping that they won’t ask any further.  
“Are you wearing glasses?” Abby asks, you are thankful she changed the subject.  
“Sometimes, when I work on the computer or when I’m watching TV.”  
“So your glasses have lenses?”  
“Um… yes.”  
“Do you know how a phone works?” Patty asks. You think they are mocking you, but they all seem very serious about their questions.  
“Just pick it up and say hello I guess.”  
“I think she’s overqualified.” The blonde engineer, Holtzmann, grins.  
“Do you like your job as a delivery girl?” You assume this could be a trick question, but decide to stay honest.  
“Not really.” You sigh. “I almost got run over like, six times in less than two weeks and I can’t get the smell of noodles out of my clothes.”  
“Good, because from this moment, you work for us.” Abby grabs your hand and shakes it.  
“But what about my work?”  
“Don’t worry about that. Besides, I already dismantled your moped.” Holtzmann chuckles.  
“What?” When…?”  
“I told you not to leave your bike in the alley.”  
“Okay then… thank you… I guess.”  
“Welcome to the team!” Patty gives you a big hug.  
“Can I ask you one more question? What is it that you guys do?” The four woman look at each other.  
“Y/N baby, you’re in for a big surprise.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to my dearest ghostwriter!!! I couldn't have done this without you!

You knock on the door of the old firehouse. It’s officially your first day as the new receptionist of The Conductors of the Metaphysical Examination, better known as the Ghostbusters. When they told you about their ghost hunting business last week, your first reaction was to run. But once they explained how they work by showing you videos of previous busts and reassuring you that none of those ghosts would follow you home, you agreed on taking the job. At this point, anything was better than smelling like a walking Chinese dinner. Erin opens the door and lets you in. She walks to the desk you tidied up a few days earlier.  
“This is actually Kevin’s desk, but as long as he doesn’t show up, it’s yours.” she says. “The kitchen is over there, there’s food in the fridge so if you’re hungry, help yourself.”  
“Um… Ms. Gilbert, what do you want me to do?” You ask, a little unsure.  
“When people call, you write down their name, address, and ask for a description of the activity or ghost. Then you call us.”  
“That’s it?”  
“For now, yes.” Erin says a little mysterious. “And please, it’s Erin. If you need anything, just shout, okay?” You nod. Erin smiles and walks up the stairs. You want to make yourself useful, so you sit down behind the desk and start looking through the papers. Most of them are reports of their operations or ‘busts’. You take an empty binder and start sorting them chronologically.  
After a week, you haven’t received one phone call, but every piece of paper is classified, the books are back on the shelves in alphabetical order, and the whole ground floor, kitchen, and garage are cleaned spotless. Among the mess, you found a few pictures of a handsome blonde guy, listening to a saxophone. Not the music, just the instrument. Erin told you this was the missing Kevin before she took the pictures and assured you ‘she would find a good place to keep them’. You sit at the now organized desk in silence and become lost in thought. Your thoughts are interrupted when you hear the women laugh on the first floor. Since you started working there, they’ve been very nice to you, wishing you a good morning when they arrived, a good night when they left, and most important, they saved you from that horrible job as a delivery girl. Instead of just making coffee, you decide to do something extra. You sneak out and run to a bakery.  
With a plate of biscuits and coffee, you walk up the stairs. You’ve never been upstairs and as you climb the steps, you wonder if you’re even allowed to. They don’t notice you, so you take a few seconds to look around the second floor. Patty sits in a large comfortable couch, reading an old book, Erin and Abby are filling a whiteboard with numbers and formulas, in the middle of the room, there’s a huge table with even more books, two laptops and papers, and at the back is a separate area, by the amount of noise and 80’s music coming from there, you assume it’s Holtzmann’s lab.  
“Coffee!” You smile, hoping they won’t yell at you for trespassing their workspace. Patty, Erin and Abby look at you in surprise.  
“That’s right, we have a real receptionist now. I always forget you’re here. No offence.” Abby says as she grabs a biscuit.  
“None taken.” You wonder if she gave you a compliment or she meant that you should work harder.  
‘It’s just that Kevin wasn’t really good at his job. Most of the time, we didn’t even know if he was in the building or not.” Patty replies as she sets down her book.  
“Maybe we should move your desk up here. We only put it in the garage to keep Kevin away from the dangerous stuff.” Erin shrugs.  
“So, he ended up next to the nuclear reactor.” Holtzmann chimes from across the room.  
“The… what?!” You ask in surprise.  
“Those silver canisters on top of the Ecto-1, pretty dangerous stuff.” She grins. At least you didn’t have to wonder why your hair was getting thinner anymore. Moving the desk sounded like a great plan.   
“After we move that desk, we can start your training.” Abby smiles. You start to regret getting those biscuits instead of staying safely behind your desk.  
“T-training?”  
“Proton packs, traps, types of hauntings, and specific instructions on how to get ectoplasm out of your hair and clothes. The whole lot.”  
“The last one Erin is a pro at.” Holtz snorts. Erin shoots a glare over to the corner.  
“You want to teach… me?”  
“Yeah baby, you’re a Ghostbuster now.” Patty says with a smile as she grabs a cup of coffee.   
After they all finish their coffee, they help you move the desk to the first floor. You don’t have a lot of stuff besides the phone and some post-its, so in less than half an hour, you’re settled in your new spot. Suddenly, the sound of the phone startles you.  
“Conductors of the Metaphysical Examination, how can I help you?... The Ghostbusters, yes…” You listen to the ratling woman on the other side of the conversation. When you hang up the phone, everyone is looking at you. “A woman named Bruni claims she has some paranormal activity going on in her house. Things are being moved, noises, and at one point, she saw a face.”   
“It’s a class 2, probably T1 or T2.” Abby rattles off. “Call her back, tell her we’ll stop by tonight! Holtz, get that new trap done! Patty, see what you can find out about that family and the house! Erin and I have to run a few errands , we’ll be back in a few hours.”For the first time, you see them all in action. Patty dives into her books and, after filling her pockets with biscuits, Holtzmann disappears into her lab again.  
“Is there something I can do?” You ask Abby and Erin while they’re putting on their coats.  
“Read and research. You can start with our book ‘Ghosts From Our Past: Both Figuratively and Literally’. Patty will give you a copy.” Erin says nodding to Patty. “It’s time to start your training.”  
After getting the book, you sit at a the large table, studying the book, when a loud bang from the lab startles you.  
“Can you come here for a moment?” Holtzmann calls. You find her bent over her workstation in the most uncomfortable way. She turns her head to you and pushes her yellow goggles further on her nose. “I’m stuck.” She says like it's no big deal. You see her arm is buried under a large pile of metal. You’re too stunned to ask why or how as you carefully move pieces around in the pile, trying not to cut your hand on the sharp pieces of metal or electrocute yourself on the wires or do the same to Holtzmann. After a few minutes, you carefully work her arm out of the mess. It’s covered in blood.  
“You’re bleeding!” You say, seeing streaks of blood run down her arm.  
“It’s just a scratch.” You take her hand and look at the ‘scratch’, which looked more like a nasty gash over the top of her hand.  
“It’s more than just a scratch. Stay here.” You say worriedly before you rush down the stairs to the kitchen and come back with a clean towel.  
“Y/N, I’m fine.” She rolls her eyes.  
“No, you’re not. I’m going to get Patty.” You say sternly. Erin had told you that the best way to get Holtzmann to do something was to be stern with her, or threaten to get Patty, who would make her do it.  
“No, don’t get Patty. Will it make you feel better if I go to the hospital?” She sighs as she notices the once white towel has become a dark shade of red.  
“Yes. Let’s go, Holtzmann.” You say sternly, leading her to the Ecto-1. She gets into the passenger seat as you get into the driver’s seat and start the car. Thankfully, Holtzmann never took the keys out of it. It’s the first time you’ve driven a hearse. Or even sat in a hearse. You try not to think about its former purpose as you take a deep breath. You notice your hands are shaking as you grip the wheel of the Ecto-1. Holtzmann leans over and flips a switch, causing a loud siren to go off. “Why?” You ask over the noise as you pull out of the garage.  
“It soothes me.” She smiles. You roll your eyes and suppress a smile as you drive her to the hospital. Within a few minutes, you’re rushed into a small room and a nurse walks in.  
“Not you again.” The nurse sighs as she sees Holtzmann.  
“Do you know her?” You ask Holtz.  
“I come here often.” She shrugs.  
“Too often.” The nurse mumbles. You suppress a nervous laugh as the nurse examines Holtzmann’s hand.  
“Come on, Nurse, you totally think I’m cute.” Holtzmann says with a wink. The nurse rolls her eyes.  
“Is she going to be okay?” You ask, your voice not masking your worry well.  
“It doesn’t look too bad-”  
“Good. Can I go home yet?” Holtzmann asks as she stands up from the table.  
“Sit down, Jillian.” The nurse sighs. “You’re going to need stitches.”   
“Uugh!” Holtzmann groans like a child as she sits back down.   
“It’s your own fault, you’re the one who keeps blowing things up.” The nurse mumbles. Holtzmann is silent, probably thinking of dismantling the nurse’s car in revenge. The nurse puts six or seven stitches in Holtzmann’s hand. “All done. Try not to move your hand too much. You’re lucky it didn’t damage any nerves.” She takes off her gloves. “By the way, for the hundredth time, I’m married to my husband.” She holds her left hand out to reveal a simple gold band. You laugh as Holtzmann rolls her eyes.  
“I can change that.” She winks.  
“Thank you, very much.” You say to the nurse. “Let's go home before she drugs you.” You take Holtzmann out of the room before the nurse becomes more frustrated with her. Holtzmann is lost in her thoughts as she looks at the stitches on her hand on the way home. It’s the first time she’s been relatively silent all day. You wonder if it’s because of blood loss. As you pull into the firehouse, Holtzmann bounds out of the car before you even stop it, and rushes to the kitchen. “Holtzmann, Jumping out of the car isn’t safe. And neither is keeping that much clutter on your workstation!” You call to her as you step out of the car. “You could have been seriously hurt!”   
“Awe, somebody is worried about me.” She laughs as she walks out of the kitchen, holding a can of Pringles.  
“No, I just-”  
“Don’t lie to me, Y/N. You’re worried about Holtzie. I saw you shaking like a leaf in the car and almost crying in the hospital.”  
“I did not!” You say, looking away from Holtzmann in embarrassment, you feel your face getting warm.   
“You’re cute when you deny stuff.” Holtzmann says with a wink. “See you in a bit! I hope you’re ready!” She says before bounding up the stairs again, leaving you stunned and somewhat confused.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, a special thank you to my mind-reading ghostwriter!!!

The trip to the hospital with Holtzmann put you on edge. You drink a glass of water, hoping it would help to swallow the lump in your throat. Suddenly, Holtzmann comes sliding down the firepole with something small and black in her teeth. When she lands on the floor, she takes the object out of her mouth and walks toward you with a grin.  
“Did you watch the videos on our YouTube channel?” she asks.  
“Yes, Abby showed me.”  
“Good. What did you think of the camera work?”  
“It’s okay, it’s kind of jumpy and shaky. And there’s a weird crunching sound from the camerawoman eating Pringles all the time.” You smile.  
“Well, since you think you can do better, congratulations! You are now promoted to camerawoman.” She says and gives you the small digital camera, forcing your hand into the strap that is now wet with her spit.  
“What?” You ask, trying to not feel disgusted at the slobber.  
“Since I can’t use my hand to videotape, you have to videotape for me. We have to be at the Bruni house in an hour.”  
“O-okay.” You say, still focused on the spit.  
“Alright, Holtzie, let's get the hearse loaded.” Patty says as she comes downstairs.   
“I’ll help, Holtz shouldn’t move her hand too much.” You volunteer.  
“You don’t have to do that.” Patty says as she open a locker by the hearse. She pulls on her jumpsuit.  
“But I want to.” You smile, shoving the camera into your pocket.  
“She wants to, Patty!” Holtz smiles at the idea of getting out of work so she could sneak into the kitchen and grab some Pringles.  
“Alright, follow me. Be warned, those packs are heavy as hell!” You follow Patty upstairs as Holtz rushes off to the kitchen. Within minutes, the hearse is loaded and Holtz has stashed about five cans of Pringles inside and has changed into her jumpsuit. You notice that it’s not the most fashionable piece of clothing, but as you remember the green slime on Abby’s shirt when you delivered her soup the first time you met, you wish you had one too.   
“Sorry we’re late!” Abby yells as she and Erin rush into the firehouse and quickly put on their jumpsuits.   
“What happened this time?” Erin asks as she nods to Holtzman’s bandaged hand, she hides her worry better than you.  
“My pile of future inventions collapsed.” Holtzmann shrugs.  
“You mean your junk?” Abby says flatly. Holtzmann gives her an angry look.  
“Yeah, my junk. My hand got stuck and Y/N saved me.” She sighs.  
“Great story! Now, let’s go, we have a ghost to catch!” Abby says, not fully paying attention. You wonder how many times Holtzmann got hurt before it became a regular thing. You guess a month at most. You all rush into the hearse.  
“I’ll drive!” Holtzmann grins.  
“No, you won’t, it could aggravate your stitches.” Erin says. “I’ll drive.” She quickly gets into the driver’s seat. Holtzmann pouts as Abby gets in the passenger seat.   
“Get in the back with Patty and Y/N.” Abby says to her, causing her whine like a small child.  
“Does Holtz need a booster seat?” You smile to her.  
“I need my Pringles.” She mumbles as she climbs in next to you. She sits between you and Patty. Erin starts the car and slowly drives off as Abby gives directions.  
“Turn here.” Abby says as she points to Harlington Street.  
“Turn on the siren!” Holtzmann says loudly.  
“It’s not necessary and we were told it was illegal.” Erin says.  
“But I worked so hard to install it!” Erin ignores her as she makes a slow and cautious turn. “For god's sake, Erin, use the gas pedal!” She says as she fidgets in her seat.  
“Holtz!” Abby scolds.  
“She’s going too slow!”  
“Calm down, Holtz. It’s okay.” Patty says.   
“But it’s so boring!”  
“Oh my god, Holtzmann, eat these.” You say in slight frustration as you hand her one of her hidden cans of Pringles. She grumpily takes the can and is quiet. Now that Holtz is busy, Patty talks about what she found out about the house. You're too preoccupied with trying to keep yourself calm to listen to her. Holtzmann notices you’re getting a little anxious, and she lays her good hand on yours and gives a little squeeze as she continues to eat pringles with the other. Within twenty minutes, Erin pulls up the car in front of the address the person on the phone gave you. A woman with unbrushed red hair opens the door   
“Get that thing out of my house, please!” She says politely, barely keeping her composure.  
“Of course, ma'am. We'll need to ask you a few questions.” Erin says.  
“Yes, please, come in.” She leads you all inside the house and invited you to sit at the kitchen table. “Help yourself to the food in the fridge. It's just me here. My husband died around ten years ago.” Says says solemnly.   
“We're sorry to hear that.” You say softly.   
“Thank you.” She smiles softly. “The commotion typically happens all over the house. Feel free to explore and do what you need to.” She says as she leaves the room.   
“Turn on the camera and lets get started, camerawoman!” Holtzmann smiles at you. They check the channel on their walkie-talkies.  
“Erin and Patty, you guys cover the first floor. Y/N, you come with me and Holtzmann to the second floor. Hopefully you can see how this PKE meter works.” You nod as you follow them out of the kitchen, down a hallway, and up a staircase into another hallway.  
“I love the smell of old houses.” You breathe in the scent.   
“I think that’s asbestos.” Holtz says with a laugh. You roll you eyes.  
“Okay, you have the camera started?” Abby asks you. You power on the machine and video Abby. “We’re going to start with this room over here and see if we get any readings.” Abby points to the door closest to you. You nod and follow her and Holtzmann into the room, it’s a small bedroom, about the size of the second floor of the Chinese restaurant you used to work at. Abby powers on her PKE meter.  
“How come you guys don’t have an animal with you?” You ask, recalling that tip of the book Abby and Erin had written.  
“That’s what we have Holtzmann for.” Abby smiles at her.  
“Woof.” Holtzmann grins.  
“Funny, I always saw you as a cat.” You say with a laugh. You all roam around the room for a few minutes, but the PKE meter never goes off.   
“Let’s try the room across the hall.” Holtzmann suggests. “There isn’t anything scary here except for that painting.” She points to an ugly painting of what looks like either a horse or a cow, it’s too hard to tell.   
“Maybe we’ll find something down the hall.” Abby nods. You follow them out of the room and across the hall. This continues for the next five rooms in the hallway.  
“Abbs, there’s nothing here. We should go find Patty and Erin.” Holtz sighs as you follow them out of the last room. You turn the camera towards yourself.  
“So far, all we’ve found is an ugly painting, a family of spiders, a cockroach that Holtz snuck into her pocket-”  
“Holtzmann!” Abby interrupts. “Put the bug back!”   
“I need to do experiments on something!”   
“No! Remember those movies where giant bugs attack? You’ll be the cause of the giant bugs with all your radiation!” Holtzmann smiles at the thought.  
“Heh, I could be the bug overlord.” She smiles as she pulls the irritated bug out of her pocket. She puts it up to her face. “I am your leader!”  
“Put it down!” Abby sighs.   
“Fine.” Holtz pouts as she lets the creature go. It rushes into a hole in the nearby wall.  
“As I was saying-”  
“Y/N got scared by a coatrack!” Holtz yells into the camera.  
“You jumped out from behind it!” You defend yourself.  
“Enough, turn off the camera and lets go get Erin and Patty.” Abby says as she walks down the stairs. You obey and follow behind Holtzmann. “And Holtzmann, that family of spiders better still be upstairs.”   
“All of them?”  
“Yes.”  
“Damn.” She heads back up the stairs.  
“Did you guys find anything?” Erin asks you.  
“Please tell me she ain’t trying to bring back any bugs.” Patty points to Holtz, letting you know that it’s normal for her to collect bugs.  
“We didn’t find anything.” Abby shrugs. Holtzmann slides down the banister as you all head back to the kitchen.  
“If that ghost doesn’t want to interact, we might be here the whole night.” Erin sighs.  
“Oh man, I can’t miss my beauty sleep again!” Patty complains.  
“You’ll always be beautiful to me.” Holtzmann says with a sheepish smile as she lays her head against Patty’s chest.  
“Girl, we need to get you away from those toxic fumes in the lab more often.” Patty replies flatly.  
“So, is the lab just one big ticking death trap?” You ask curiously.  
“Pretty much.” Abby shrugs.  
“And you’re all cool with that?”  
“We have to be. As long as I don’t find my desk full of cockroaches and other creepy crawlies again, I’ve learned to get used to it.” Erin shivers.  
“I’m not surprised.”  
“Erin sure was. You should have seen her scream.” Holtzmann laughed fondly as she opened the fridge.  
“Get out of the fridge!” Patty says.  
“But I’m hungry, and she said we could eat.”  
“No, we have to keep working.” Erin sighs.  
“Okay, Patty, why don’t you do some sweeps of the upper floor and talk to us on the walkie if you find anything?”  
“Got it.” She nods.   
“Erin, you take the back rooms, Holtz, Y/N, and I will take the front rooms.” Erin nods and walks off. You follow Abby and Holtzmann to the living room.   
“Remind me to buy new instead of used.” You mumble.  
“You can still get ghosts from new houses, newbie. You could have someone buried under or in the foundation, like at the firehouse!” Holtz smiles.  
“Wait, what?” You ask.  
“Holtz, that’s not funny.” Abby sighs. “There’s no one dead under or in the firehouse except for our sanity when Holtz is like a live wire.”   
“Guilty.” She smiles.  
“I’m going to go do a sweep of the whole floor and check on Erin.” Abby says, not wanting to deal with Holtz scaring you. You and Holtz sit in the dark for over an hour while you wait on Abby ro return.   
“Abby come back?” Patty says on the walkie. She checks in every few minutes to update Holtzmann on her spiders and cockroach.  
“Not yet.” Holtz says. “How are Robin and her kids and Steve?”  
“Wait, I hear something.” You whisper. Abby walks into the room.  
‘Nothing, no abnormalities.” She sighs.   
“You or Erin find anything yet?” Patty asks Abby.  
“Not yet.” She sighs. “But, Patty, you have to lower your voice, we can almost hear you without the walkie!” You try not to laugh as you hear her say something though the floor. You can’t quite make it out.   
“Patty, I need to know if Steve is okay and if Robin is taking care of the kids!” Holtzmann yells to the ceiling.  
“Holtzmann, they’re bugs.” Patty says through the walkie.  
“But I need to know! I love them!”   
“Oh, my god.” Patty sighs. “They’re fine. They’re bugs.” Patty becomes silent again. You, Abby, and Holtz sit in silence as you watch Holtzmann fidget with her proton wand. You begin to doze off in the silence.  
“I have to pee, I’ll be right back!” Holtmann suddenly says, causing you to jump. She quickly leaves the room, leaving you and Abby in the dark living room. Now that Holtzmann is gone, you realise just how dark it is. Darkness used to frighten you, it still makes you feel uneasy, and knowing there’s a ghost nearby makes it even worse.  
“How are you holding up?” Abby says suddenly, startling you.  
“It’s nerve racking, but I think I might get used to it.” You reply with a fake smile.  
“You’re doing great.” Abby smiles. All of a sudden, you both hear crunching sounds coming from the kitchen and as you look up, you see a light glowing just near the entrance to the kitchen. “This could be it! Keep the camera ready!” Abby says with excitement. You stay close behind Abby as she approaches the kitchen door. You hold your breath as she jumps around the corner. “Holtz! For God's sake! Stop eating their food!” You look over Abby’s shoulder and see Holtzmann, standing in the light of the fridge, with her mouth full of food.  
“Blood loss made me hungry.” Holzmann pouts as she shows her bandaged hand.  
“What happened to your Pringles?” Abby asks. She shrugs.  
“You’re eating frozen peas!” You look at her.  
“At least she’s eating vegetables.” Abby says flatly.  
“A potato is a vegetable.”  
“Not when it’s fried and salted and put in a can.”  
“Hush.” You say suddenly. A sound catches your attention, it sounds like footsteps on the stairs but they’re not coming from the stairway where Erin and Patty are. You notice the noise is coming from a rug in the corner of the room. You lift it up to reveal a small door with stairs.. You pull the handle on the door to reveal a basement. “Guys, you see this?” They look at you in surprise as you step away from the door.   
“Holtz and I will go first.” Abby says. You nod and follow them to the stairs. As Abby gets closer to the door, the antennae on the PKE meter starts spinning. You suddenly remember the stories Erin told you about slime and cracks, so you keep a little distance from the girls and point the camera to the basement door as the girls walk down the steps. One of the steps creaks as Abby steps on it and the footsteps stop just as suddenly as they appear. She takes a few more steps down the stairs, the PKE meter is still spinning, but much slower. “Whatever it was, it’s gone quiet again.” Abby says, somewhat disappointed as she turns back. From the corner of your eye you see a shadow move from the basement into the kitchen. You turn around to see the black mass. There’s no body or limbs, just a face and two red eyes staring at you.   
“A-Abby?” You mumble. Your instincts tell you to scream and run, but you hold your ground, recording everything and trying not to faint from fear as Abby closes the basement door.  
“Don’t worry, I’m right here.” Holtzmann whispers as she moves close to you, causing you to jump.   
“Abby, it’s all yours!” Holtzmann calls to her. Abby points her proton wand to the apparition and pulls the trigger. The dark mass is consumed by orange and red energy until it dissolves, leaving a puddle of ectoplasm on the floor. You keep staring at the little screen on the camera. Your hands are sweating and you’re still trying to process the fact that you saw your very first ghost.  
“Did we catch it?” You exhale, not even realizing you were holding your breath.  
“It’s impossible to catch a class 2, there isn’t enough mass to draw in. But the hollow laser from the proton pack has vaporized it so it can’t reform.” Holtzmann explains.   
“Did we miss it?” Erin and Patty come in running.   
“It was just a class 2, just like we thought. It’s gone.” Abby smiles.   
“Cool, let’s go tell the old lady and get out of here.” Patty says.  
“I’ll call her.” Erin pulls out her cellphone and dials the number.  
“What do you think of it all?” Patty asks you as Erin begins to roam around while she waits on someone to answer the phone.  
“It’s definitely different. But’s it’s better than working with Benny.” You smile. Abby laughs.  
“Anything is better than dealing with Benny.” She mumbles. You realise Holtzmann is gone, but don’t say anything.  
“Hello, Mrs.-Wah!” Erin yells as she discovers the puddle of slime. You close your eyes so you don’t see her fall. Abby picks up the phone from the ground.  
“Yes, this is the Ghostbusters. We’ve taken care of your ghost problem. Call us if something strange happens. Have a nice night.” Abby says before hanging up the phone.  
“Oh, Erin, there’s slime- oh, you already found it.” Holtzmann says, suddenly returning.  
“Where did you go?” You ask.  
“Holtzy, we will leave your ass here if you have those bugs.” Patty says. After ten minutes of Patty and Holtzmann argueing over bugs while you and Abby helped Erin up, Patty finally wins and you all head back to the hearse.  
“Someone other than Erin drive!” Holtzmann says as she climbs in the backseat by the window. You help load the proton packs into the back of the hearse and slide in next to her, Patty takes the other window seat. Abby drives while Erin sits in the passenger seat. Everyone is pretty quiet and soon, you fall asleep. Your first real encounter with the paranormal left you exhausted.   
“C’mon, baby girl, wake up.” Patty says gently. You notice you’re leaning on something.  
“Steve will take care of this.” You hear Holtzman say as something tickles your face. You quickly jump up and rub your face.  
“Holtzmann!” You say groggily.  
“Relax, it’s just a string I pulled off my jumpsuit.” She smiles as she holds the tan string out in front of you.  
“You’re mean, Holtz.” You sigh.   
“And you’re adorable when you’re asleep.” You slowly climb out of the car and stretch your limbs.  
“We can leave the packs and everything in the hearse until morning.” Abby yawns.  
“Alright, thanks for the fun night out, guys. I’d better get to my apartment.”  
“Want me to drive you?” Erin offers.  
“No, I don’t have to go far, only fifteen blocks or so.” You yawn.  
“You’re not going to walk home on your own in the middle of the night! You can sleep here.” Abby says. It sounds more like an order than an offer.  
“We have bunk beds on the second floor.” Erin smiles as she takes her suit off, the back covered in slime from when she fell. The idea of sleeping alone in the huge building isn’t too appealing to you after your night of fun.  
“I’m sleeping here too.” Holtz said.  
“Okay.” You say a little too quickly and eagerly. A smile spreads across her face. Patty and Abby take of their suits and put them away while Erin sets hers in the kitchen sink full of warm water to soak. Holtzmann unzips hers to her waist, but doesn’t take it off.   
“Follow me to our resting place.” She smiles.  
“Goodnight, guys.” You say to the girls.  
“Night, Y/N. Don’t get too crazy tonight.” Patty winks. You can’t help but blush as Holtzmann leads you up the stairs to the third floor where there is a makeshift bedroom with two bunk beds and a single bed.   
“Pick a bed, any bed!” Holtz smiles as she walks into the bathroom that is connected to the room. You chose the bottom bunk closest to the window. You kick off your shoes and throw yourself on the bed. You cover yourself with the blanket, they’re soft so you assume Erin has cleaned them. Holtzmann walks in, wearing sweatpants and top.  
“Good choice. Personally, I prefer the top.” She winks as she turns off the light. “Nighty night.” She smiles and gives you a kiss on your forehead before she climbs in the bunk above you.  
“Goodnight.” You say. You’re quiet for a while, staring into the darkness. “Holtz?”  
“Yup?” She leans over and looks at you upside down.  
“You think I’ll be a good Ghostbuster?” You ask nervously.  
“Nope.” Your heart sinks. You tried so hard tonight. “I think you’re going to be a great Ghostbuster.” A smile lights up your face. “You were alert and when you saw a ghost, you didn’t run. I think you’re ready for the next class at the Ghostbusters Academy.” You hear her laugh as she returns to her bunk.   
“Thanks, Holtz.” You smile.  
“Yep.” She replies.  
“Goodnight, Holtz.” You say softly.   
“Goodnight Y/N. Goodnight Steve.”   
“Holtzmann, I swear to god if you have that damn bug I’ll call Patty.” Holtz giggles. At this moment, you are sure this is the place where you belong and you can’t wait to see what’s coming next. “I’m not kidding Holtzmann.” You say to her. Holtz ignores you. You fall asleep smiling, listening to Holtzmann humming ‘The rhythm of the night’.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (AGAIN!) Special thanks to my ghostwriter and friend for helping me and making this story came to life!

“I’m back!” You hear Holtzmann yell as she walks up the stairs to the first floor of the firehouse. You put your headphones back in and continue to practice in the alley next to the building with the arsenal Holtzmann left you. One of your headphones falls out of your ear. You don’t bother to replace it as you take a small break, reloading the weapons.  
“That was fast. That nurse of yours didn’t kick you out, didn’t she?” You hear Erin say from the window in front of you. You glance up to see she has a slight smile as she sips a cup of coffee.  
“She isn't my nurse.” Holtz mumbles as she glances out of the window to you. You pretend to be busy and act like you can’t see or hear her.   
“Now that you’re here, can you tell me why Y/N is practicing on her own?” Abby asks like a mother about to scold her small child. “Aren’t you supposed to be supervising?”  
“She’ll be fine.” Holtzmann shrugs as she grabs a can of Pringles off the table.  
“Man, that girl needs to get some sleep. She’s always up late studying, shooting stuff during the day, and she manages to get her work done. When does she eat?” Patty mumbles as she looks up at the others from her book. You move away from the window so you aren’t being suspicious.  
“She eats Holtz’s Pringles every so often.” Erin says, looking out the window at you while you aim a proton gun a target.  
“You are not allowed to turn the newbie into a second Holtzmann.” Abby says. “The city isn't capable of handling that.” You smile slightly at Abby’s words.  
“This kind of awesomeness doesn’t happen overnight.” Holtzmann grins and takes a bow. “I’ll go check on her.” You are lost in thought as you place the loose headphone back in your ear and shoot the gun, missing the target. “Y/N!” Holtzmann suddenly yells from behind you. She dives to the ground as you turn around, pointing your proton gun to her. “Easy there, I just came back from the hospital!” She smiles. You immediately point the gun away from her.  
“Sorry, Holtz!” You yell at her. Then you realize you’re still wearing the headphones so you take them off again. “Was I shouting?” Holtzmann nods with a slight smile. “Sorry. You got your stitches out?”  
“Yup! Good as new!” She smiles and shows you her hand. The bandage is gone and there’s only a small, pink scar. “So how are you doing here?”  
“Pretty good, I’m getting used to the weight of the proton pack, and I’ve gotten the hang of the wand, but I’m struggling with the proton gun.” You sigh.  
“That’s because you’re shooting it like a real gun. Here, let me show you.” She sets her Pringles on the ground and steps closer to you until she’s standing behind you. She wraps her arms around you and lays her hand on yours, still holding the gun. She pushes her body against yours. “Bend your knees a little bit more, aim, and shoot.” She says confidently. You pull the trigger and hit the target’s bullseye.   
“Awesome.” You breath, flustered.   
“I know. Try it on your own.” Holtzmann urges you with a grin as she steps back. You nod, aim, and shoot, hitting just above the bullseye. You do this a few more times.  
“I’ve got it!” You grin to her. She smiles at you, there’s pride in her smile and something you can’t identify. “Holtz?” You ask her after a moment of silence.   
“Yeah?” She asks, somewhat surprised. You assume she was daydreaming.  
“I did it!” You point to the target.  
“That’s great!” She smiles. “Now, I’ve got some things to show you and the girls. Wait right here!” Holtzmann says before rushing off. You pick up the can of Pringles she left behind and munch on them as you wait for her return. Within minutes, Abby, Patty, and Erin appear wearing their jumpsuits and helmets.  
“Do I need one of those?” You ask, pointing to the helmets.  
“It wouldn’t hurt.” Abby shrugs. Before you can reply, Holtzmann returns with a table full of equipment.  
“Let me introduce you to our new toys.” Holtzmann smiles as she points to a round black sphere. “The proton bomb has a similar effect to the grenades. They’re remote controlled, just push the button and poof.” She grins.  
“Medium poof?” Erin asks curiously as she picks it up and studies it from all sides.   
“Big poof.” Holtzmann grins deviously. Erin slowly puts the device down and all three of you take a step back. “Next one is the proton crossbow. The aim’s off and reloading will be difficult in a stress situation, but it looks awesome.” You take a closer look and see some pieces from the Chinese restaurant’s moped in there. “I also made a little adjustment to our proton packs.” She says as she puts on her own pack. “I added flashlights on top of the wands so we can work in the dark and not frighten away the ghosts of so many years ago with a little illumination.” She says dramatically and turns the flashlight on. There’s a faint, almost nonexistent, glow in the daylight. “I may have to juice it up a little.” She grins. “And, lastly, for our newest member, I have... a personalized proton gun!” She picks up a beautiful piece of weaponry and hands it to you.  
“Holtzmann… It’s amazing.” You breath. You keep staring at the gun, its beautiful design in shiny chrome is only interrupted by the sandblasted ghost logo. It fits perfectly in your hand.   
“I customized it to your size and grip, it’s lightweight but very powerful. It has three adjustment possibilities going from vapor to cataclysm. It’s detachable from the proton pack but the battery only last for maybe five blasts, depending on the power you use. Go ahead, give it a try.” You point the gun towards the target, pull the trigger and hit it right in the middle.  
“Our baby girl is growing up!” Patty laughs as she pulls you in a hug and lifts you in the air.   
“Wooo!” Holtz yells as she throws her arms in the air. You spend the rest of the afternoon playing with your new toy until you're called back to the firehouse for dinner.

“And that was how we discovered that some slimes can alter a person’s emotions.” Abby finished her story as Erin blushes as Holtzmann winks at her. You are all sitting around the big table, enjoying another take out dinner. Party and Holtzmann ate cheesesteak, Abby ate soup that was all broth, and you and Erin shared a pizza. You’re listening while Abby, Erin, Holtzmann and Patty are taking a walk down memory lane. You already had to sit through the cringe worthy little song and dance Abby and Erin did in high school, but the stories about how they saved the city never bore you.   
“What’s the worst thing you found when you were on a bust at someone's house?” You ask curiously.  
“Skid marks in the toilet.” Holtzmann replies without missing a beat.  
“I prefer having skid marks in the toilet than a ghost and slime in the sink. Remember Rowan?” Abby asks.   
“I sure do.” Holtzmann mumbles as she rubs her neck.   
“Or that crazy guy who showed us around that murder house in Hoboken? He opened the basement door and all those boxes were flying around.”Erin laughed.   
“And he only said: ‘Mainly storage’ and closed the door again!” Patty grins.  
“He didn’t care about his archive flying around, but he didn’t like the ‘boos’ in the middle of the night.” Holtzmann chuckled. They continued to tell stories until all the food is gone.  
“I've got some late night oil to burn, what about you girls?” Abby asks as she stands up and stretches.  
“I think so.” Erin smiles. Patty nods. The three of them get up and leave you and Holtzmann alone.  
“I’m going back to work, care to join me?” Holtzmann asks you as you begin to clean up the plates.  
“Sure.” You smile maybe a little too eagerly. During the past weeks, you grew fond of the blonde engineer. Whenever you had the chance, you sat in her lab, watching her work and dance. You quickly toss the paper plates, boxes, wrappers, and containers into the trash can and follow Holtzmann to the lab.   
“Abby, you know where to find us.” She winks at her as the two of you walk by the whiteboard she's at.  
“Don’t blow anyone or anything up. I want both of you to leave the lab with ten fingers, ten toes, two eyes, two ears, and all limbs attached to the body naturally.” Abby replies.  
“Yes, Mother.” Holtzmann grins as she leads you to the lab.  
“No experimenting on the rookie.” Patty says, not looking up from another book.  
“Stay away from colored slime.” Erin warns. You laugh, recalling the story.   
“You enjoyed that, baby.” Holtzmann winks. Erin rolls her eyes as the two of you become hidden by piles of junk and who knows what.  
“What are you working on today?” You say with a yawn as you sit on the chair Holtzmann placed by the desk for you. You are exhausted, but you are determined to stay awake.  
“Many, many things.” Holtzmann says slowly, searching for her boombox. You hit the button on the boombox and a cassette of 80’s music blares from the speakers.  
“Turn it down, Holtzy!” Patty yells as a pen comes flying over the wall of junk. You turn the crank so only you and Holtzmann can hear the music.  
“That’s no fun. Noise is my inspiration.” Holtzmann mumbles as she examines the pen.  
“Do not tear up my pen, Holtzmann!” Abby yells.  
“What pen?” Holtzmann smiles. You roll your eyes as she sets it aside with about twenty other pens that have been thrown at her just that week alone. “Time to get to work.” She smiles at you.  
“What about your inspiration?” You yawn.  
“What? Do you need water or something?” She asks, confused. You feel your face getting red. “You’re adorable.” She snorts as she gets to work. You watch as she swings her hips to the music and pounds metal to the beat. You easily fall asleep just being in her presence. 

“We have a surprise for you. Come on!” Holtzmann shakes you awake. You look up to see you’re on the couch now and Erin, Abby, Patty, and Holtzmann surround you. They all have excited grins on their faces.  
“I feel like I should be afraid.” You reply as you stand up from the couch and stretch.  
“We were all involved, so it’s safe.” Abby says. You follow them downstairs to the garage and over to the lockers the suits were kept in.   
“Notice anything?” Holtzmann can’t contain her excitement and the others are smiling proudly. You look at the lockers, one of the empty ones now has your name on it.  
“Open it!” Erin’s smile turns into a grin. You carefully open it incase Holtzmann did something to it. Inside, there’s a pair of gloves, boots, and a brand new jumpsuit. You take the jumpsuit out of the locker and look at it. It has your last name on it just like the other’s suits.   
“You also get your own proton pack.” Abby smiles.  
“I’ve got one more surprise for you.” Holtzmann grins. Abby, Erin, and Patty give her a confused look. You know they have no idea what is about to happen. Holtzmann pulls a remote out of her pocket. “Erin has gone through rigorous initiations to become a Ghostbuster, and you will have to do the same.”   
“Holtz, I-” Erin starts to say.  
“Fire in the hole!” Holtzmann yells, as she slams down the button. You hear gears turn on the ceiling as they move what looks like a huge cheap water balloon towards you. You just stare at it, unable to move. Due to the speed and getting caught on something, the balloon pops prematurely, sending at least two gallons of ectoplasm down. Time seems to slow as the green slime pours down upon none other than Erin, covering her face, clothes, and hair in the green goo. Everyone is silent as Holtzmann turns off the machine. “That, uh, wasn’t my intention, but I’ll take it.” She shrugs. “I’ve, uh, I think I left a flamethrower on!” She says before running away. You stare at Erin as she wipes the slime off her face.   
“Now is a good time to teach you how to remove slime from hair and clothes.” Erin says flatly.  
“I have to ask, how does that feel?” You say. Erin walks up to you, scrapes a chunk of slime out of her hair, and places it in your hand. The cold slime sends shivers down your spine.   
“That’s how it feels.” She replies. You try to shake it off your hand, but it doesn’t move. You shake your hand wildly, but it still stays in place. “Let me go change in the bathroom and I’ll show you how to remove it from skin.” She sighs.   
“Thanks, Erin.” She nods as she walks up the stairs into the bathroom. At the same time, Holtzmann slides down the firepole. You play with the slime, getting it stuck on your other hand.  
You all move back upstairs and get back to work. You sit at your desk, waiting for Erin to return to get the goo off your hands.   
“It’s like the time we gave Holtzy bubblegum.” Patty whispers as she watches you pry your hands apart, causing the slime to stretch and fall by your feet. You wrap it around your arm and try to break it in two to no avail. Holtzmann grins as she walks over to the table and sits down, crossing her arms.  
“It’s adorable. It’s like a little puppy that’s stuck in a ball of yarn!” Abby gushes. You’re about to try to bite through the slime when you hear Erin scream. You all jump. except for Holtzmann, as you hear Erin run out of the bathroom and down the stairs with a small towel, about two feet long and wide, in her hands.  
“I think she met Bruce.” Holtzmann smiles.  
“Do I want to know who or what Bruce is?” You sigh, putting the slime away from your mouth and allowing it to fall to the floor.  
“He’s my bat.” Holtz says in a deep, growling Batman-voice.   
“Holtzmann, you have to stop catching wild animals and forcing them into captivity.” Abby sighs.  
“I didn’t force him, he flew in by himself!”  
“Then open a window so he can fly out again!” Patty yells.  
“But he likes living in the bat-room.” Holtz pouts. “Heh, bat-room.” She can’t help but laugh at her own joke.   
“You get that thing out of here now or I’m calling animal control and letting them take you, too!” Erin shouts angrily from the stairs, trying to cover herself up with the tiny towel. Holtzman gets up and drags herself upstairs.  
“You’re no fun.” she mumbles and sticks out her tongue behind Erin’s back.  
“Holtzmann, I swear to God I will show you no fun if I find another monster in this building!”   
“You said building, the Ecto-1 isn’t part of the building!” She grins before quickly closing and locking the bathroom door.  
“Jillian Louise Holtzmann!” Erin screams. You can hear Holtz snicker loudly. “At least give me my clothes!” Holtzmann opens the door and hands Erin clean clothes. She looks Erin up and down, which causes Erin to turn red.   
“Relax, it’s nothing I haven't seen before.” She winks before closing and locking the door one last time.  
“Holtzmann!” Erin yells in embarrassment. You and the others can’t help but laugh. The phone tears you away from the fun.  
“We’re closed!” Patty yells through her laughter. You stare at the phone and the slime covering your hands and arms. You touch the slime to the phone and find that it sticks. You hold it up to your ear, careful not to get your hair or face in the slime.  
“Conductors of the Metaphy- please sir, calm down.” You say confidently. Of course, that never helps. You do your best to get as much information from him as possible. You reach for a pen, getting it stuck to the slime. After twenty minutes, you finally get the information down after carefully working with the slime instead of against it. You hang up the phone to end the call, but it’s still stuck to your hand.  
“What was that all about?” Erin asks as you hang up the phone a moment later. Her hair and skin are covered in the slime, but she’s wearing clean clothes. Judging by how baggy and short they are on her, you assume they’re Abby’s clothes.   
“A Mr. Wilson, he’s hearing multiple voices and a screaming male ghost that haunts his family’s house and breaks his furniture. He said it violently attacked his wife too.” You reply.   
“I had a dog like that once.” Holtzmann smiles through a mouthful of Pringles.  
“You are a dog like that.” Patty mumbled. Abby tries not to laugh.  
“He sent us pictures.” You say. You look at the laptop Patty keeps on the table.   
“Open the email!” Holtzmann smiles.  
“I can’t.” You say flatly as you show her your phone, pen, and slime covered hands. Erin smiles as Patty opens the laptop and retrieves the email. She clicks on the pictures attached to the email. A series of blurry images fill the computer screen, showing the form of a big man with red glowing eyes, his mouth wide open as if his jaw had been dislocated. His rotten skin is draped on his deformed skeleton and he’s surrounded by a greenish blue glow.   
“Distinctive human form, aggressive,... guys… this could be the one.” Abby says in excitement.  
“A class… 7.” Erin guesses.  
“That doesn’t sound good.” You mumble while you try to remember what you read about class 7 entities.  
“We’ve got a demon to catch.” Eris grins. You can’t hide the fact that you’re terrified. You can handle a class 1 and 2 entity and you successfully caught the spirit of a deceased turtle on your own once, but this went far beyond your comfort zone. Patty notices the look on your face. She smiles and lays her hand on your shoulder, making sure to avoid the slime.   
“Baby, your days as camerawoman are over, you’re playing with the big girls now.”  
“Let’s hurry and get you cleaned up, we’ll have to do an in depth lesson on cleaning slime another day.” Erin says as she drags you to the bathroom.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's something weird and it don't look good...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to my dearest friend and ghostwriter for making this story even better than I hoped it would be!

It’s almost 9 o’clock when the Ecto-1 pulls up in front of an old mansion. Thunder is roaring in the distance and lightning lights up the dark clouds. The house looks like one from all the horror movies, the one where the teenagers aren’t supposed to go but choose to anyway. You feel frightened by the house. The five of you just take a moment and stare at it as you feel fear rising in your bones. Something doesn’t feel right.  
“The Aldrich Mansion was nothing compared to this.” Erin speaks up.  
“Y-yeah.” Abby mumbles with a nod. “Okay, let’s go inside.” You all walk up to the front porch, Holtzmann ducks to the side of the house.  
“She does that. Don’t know why, never asked.” Patty assures you.  
“Guys? You might want to see this.” Holtzmann’s voice calls before you step on the porch. The four of you quickly follow her voice. The air seems to stick to your lungs as you look at what Holtzmann is pointing at. Even she seems somewhat frightened by her discovery. On the side of the house someone spray painted the words ‘evil inside’ along with two red eyes.   
“I thought that dude in the subway was creepy.” Patty mumbles.  
“Which dude?” Holtzmann asks. “The blue floaty guy or the janitor guy that tried to kill us all? Patty rolls her eyes.  
“Let's get going.” Abby interrupts. The five of you slowly and quietly walk back to the front porch. Abby is the first one to walk up the old, wooden steps and up the the screen front door. There’s a note taped to it. Abby takes it and quickly reads it. “The family moved to a hotel.” She says, shoving the note in her pocket.  
“You blame ‘em?” Patty asks. Erin laughs nervously.  
“Did they leave the door unlocked or do I get to be creative?” Holtzmann asks with a grin. Abby gives her a flat look as she opens the screen door and pushes open the metal front door open. “That’s disappointing. I just watched a new video on lock picking.” You can’t help but crack a small smile. Abby steps into the house first, then Erin, Patty, Holtzmann, and you. The house looked like it had been robbed, not one piece of furniture was still in place. The metal door slams behind you, causing you to let out a short yelp in surprise and Erin to nearly jump out of her skin. Holtzmann gives you a ‘I will protect you’ look. You take a deep breath and look around some more. You can’t shake the bad feeling you have and you notice that the other women are more nervous too. They seem to be more focussed than you, but they’ve been doing this a lot longer than you.  
“Okay, let’s do this.” Abby mumbles. “Patty, you look around here, Y/N, Holtz, Erin, and I will check the basement. Patty nods and moves to a different room while the four of you head to the basement. The basement seems small, but it has many rooms that branch off of it. There’s no electricity to it, so you all have the flashlights from your proton packs on. The claustrophobic space makes you nervous. You hear something scurry across the floor and shoot it.  
“You just roasted a rat.” Erin says flatly.  
“Someone is triggerhappy!” Holtzmann laughs.  
“That’s enough, Holtz.” Abby scolds, trying not to laugh herself.  
“Come on guys, there’s nothing down here.” Erin says, taking pity on you. You walk toward the back wall of the basement, it splits off into five rooms.  
“We’ll each take a room and meet back here when we finish.” Abby says. You tighten your grip on the proton wand as you nod in agreement. You take the room farthest to the right, not paying attention to the rooms the other girls take.  
“This won’t be too bad, how big can the room be?” You say to yourself as you enter. It seems colder here, but maybe it was just your mind playing tricks on you. You get about halfway into the room, which is actually pretty big, and your flashlight dies. You freeze in fear, unable to see. “It’s okay, I’ll just back up until I’m out of the room and wait for the others.” You say, trying to calm yourself. A soft, high pitched voice that sounds like a child makes your blood run cold.  
“It’s raining, it’s pouring…”  
“Abby, Erin, Holtzmann?” You call out to the others. They can’t hear you, you’re too far away from them.  
“Being dead is boring…” The voice whispers harshly into your ear. You can feel it’s breath tickle your ear and all the hair on your body raises. At this moment, you understand true fear.  
“Having fun yet?” A new voice, deep and demonic, says. Your heart stops and you jump back. Holtzmann burst out in laughter as your flashlight comes back on. She steps into the light.  
“H-how? What the hell, Holtz!” You yell. She grins. Abby and Erin rush into the room.  
“What’s going on?” They both say, eyes wide with worry. You hold back tears of fear.  
“I totally got Y/N! She nearly peed her pants!” Holtzmann laughs.  
“How did you do the kid voice?” You ask, hoping they don’t notice you’re trying not to cry.  
“What kid voice?” Holtzmann gives you a confused look. That’s it. You lose it.   
“A-a kid, there was a kid here!” You shout, frightened. Tears finally fall from your face. Holtzmann’s face falls.  
“Hey, don’t cry. I’m sorry. It was me.” She wraps you in a hug. “See, it’s just Holtzy.” She says in the child voice.   
“Holtzmann, our insurance won’t pay for therapy, I’ve tried. Stop trying to emotionally scar and scare the poor girl.” Erin rolled her eyes.  
“You’re an ass!” You say as you try to force yourself to stop crying. You still hold on to her as tight as you can. You feel safe in Holtzmann’s arms. There’s something about being so close to Holtzmann that makes your heart flutter.  
“Let’s go back upstairs, maybe there is something there.” Abby sighs in frustration. “By the way, Holtz, you’re lucky she didn’t fry you like she did that rat.” Holtz grins as she lets go of you.   
“That gives me an idea for a mouse trap.” Holtzmann mumbles. “But, she wouldn’t do that. I’m too cute.” She winks before dashing away. You, Erin, and Abby follow behind Holtzmann as she takes the lead and climbs up the stairs.  
“Let’s try the attic, Holtz.” Abby calls up to her.   
“Got it, soup mama!” Holtz replies as she throws open the basement door. It hits the wall with a loud bang, causing you to jump.   
“Holtzmann, we’re trying to catch the dead, not wake it.” Erin says.   
“Whatever!” Holtzmann laughs as she makes a left turn, walks down a long hallway, and enters the kitchen. Your hair stands up on end again. You feel in your gut that something isn’t right.   
“You okay there Patty?” Abby yells.  
“Yeah! All good!” She replies from the living room. Holtzmann jumps up as high as she can to reach the string to pull down the attic stairs, but she just isn’t tall enough. “Alright, Abby, I need you to get on all fours over here, I’ll climb on your back and-”  
“Or I could do this.” Erin says flatly as she walks over to the string and pulls it. The stairs come down quickly.  
“Well, that wasn’t as much fun, Ms. String Bean.” Holtzmann pouts. “Dibs on the attic!” She grins before bounding up the steps. At the top, she takes a peek into the dark attic. Something isn’t right. The PKE meter goes crazy.   
“Holtz! Watch out” Abby suddenly yells. Erin grabs you by the arm and pulls you backwards with her. A blue glowing mass charges at Holtz, knocking her down the stairs. She tumbles down and hits the floor with a loud bang. She doesn’t move. You yank your arm away from Erin and rush to her before Erin and Abby can react.  
“Holtz? Holtzmann?” You don’t care about the ghost that disappeared into thin air. After a few seconds, she opens her eyes.  
“What? What did I do?” She says, disoriented.  
“You fell. Are you okay? Can you move?” You ask in fear. Slowly, she leans on her elbows.  
“Holtz? What’s wrong?” Erin asks and shines the light of her proton pack on her.  
“I- I think my leg is broken.” She says only somewhat worried. “It’s no big deal.” She smiles slightly.  
“What is wrong with this woman and underreacting to serious and dangerous things?” You ask yourself. You hear something barreling down the hallway and prepare your proton wand, ready to re-kill the thing that was coming to attack Holtzmann.  
“What happened?” Patty booms as she comes into your vision. You put your wand back in place.  
“Holtzmann got attacked.” You say like a small child whose mother just collapsed.  
Patty gently rolls up Holtzmann’s pant leg. Holtmann hisses in pain with the slightest movement. There’s no open wound but there’s a huge dark red bruise and you can see that the bone is pushing against her skin. An earsplitting scream scares all of you. You feel your body tremble. You just want to go back to when you got the call and never answer the phone.  
“We need to get you out of here!” Abby says. Patty nods and reaches out to help Holtzmann up, but as soon as Holtzmann moves, she screams out in pain.  
“Holtzy, talk to me baby!”  
“Ribs…” She breaths.  
“Oh man this is bad.” Erin breaths. You and Abby follow her gaze. Whatever flew down the attic stairs is back, and it isn’t happy.   
“Go, save yourselves.” Holtzmann says. Abby, Erin, and Patty ready their proton guns. You stay by Holtzmann’s side, holding your proton gun and ready to protect her. “Please, go.” She whispers. You ignore her. You don’t know if you’re seeing shadows move or if your eyes are just playing tricks on you, but as soon as Abby and Erin start to react to them too, you fear the worst. Your heart beats in your chest and you feel like you’re about to puke.  
“We got to stay together!” Patty says sternly.  
“I promise you, it’s perfectly safe!” You all hear Holtzmann’s voice, but she’s not the one who’s talking. It sounds like a tape recorder being played. As you look at her, you see tears running down her cheeks, her breathing is shallow and she’s shaking. “Go ahead, turn it on.” The voice goes on, followed by the sound of a loud explosion.  
“You did this, Jillian Holtzmann.” The demon’s voice yells, surrounding you.   
“No! No it wasn’t my fault!” Holtzmann cried. Suddenly you realize this was the lab accident that destroyed her career at CERN and put her former lab partner in a coma. Abby told you once because Holtzmann never wanted to talk about it.  
“Leave her alone!” Erin screams into the darkness.  
“Dr. Erin Gilbert... the failure… all alone…” The demonic voice says, not as loudly.  
“Ghost girl, ghost girl, ghost girl!” The numerous voices of children seem to chant. The chanting gets faster and faster as a dark mass moves across the room towards Erin, eyes glowing red as if they were on fire.  
“She’s not alone!” Abby screams as she fires her wand to the shadow. The ghost shrieks and you feel the energy change, popping your ears. The dark mass ionizes right in front of you, turning into the creature you saw on the pictures. You don’t hesitate, it’s almost like you aren’t yourself, but a different and braver person. The demon dodges the blast. He scrapes his nails against the wall, tearing down wallpaper and some paintings. Abby and Patty both fire their proton wands but it doesn’t seem to affect it. They’re thrown back by something you can’t see. Erin slides underneath the long end table by the stairs. She’s covering her ears, trying to get the voices from her past out of her head. The ghost takes advantage of the weakness and smashes the chairs onto the table, sending splinters into her hair and jumpsuit.  
“I’m here, Erin!” Abby yells from the floor.  
“I am too, baby!” Patty says.   
“You got it, Erin!” Holtz says weakly.  
“E-Erin, y-you g-got t-this!” You call to her, you voice full of fear.  
“Enough!” The demonic voice yells. The antique mirror on the wall above you shatters in a million of pieces, the shards raining down upon you. One of the pieces scratches your cheek. In a sudden boost of confidence, Erin reaches for one of her proton grenades. Before she can push the button, the ghost grabs her and throws her against the wall. She falls to the floor and loses consciousness. The grenade rolls out of her hand. It’s only a few feet away from you so you reach for it. The ghost turns to you. You quickly push the button and throw it, hitting the demon in the face. With a loud scream it turns away and flies to the next room. Abby scrambles to her feet and rushes to Erin. She gently brushes her hair away from her face, there’s a big bump on her forehead.   
“She’s out.” she sighs. Patty tends to Erin. You hear Holtzmann groan and you rush to her side.  
“How are y-you holding up?” You ask, trying to not go into complete panic.   
“I- I’ve had worse.” She forces a slight smile.  
“Is there anything I can do?”  
“Y-yeah… find… my…” Pain flashes across her face.  
“Yes Holtz…”  
“... Pringles.”  
“Damnit, Holtz, there’s more important things than damn Pringles!” You hiss.   
“We gotta get outta here.” Patty says. “I’ll get Queen Pringle, you two get Erin.” You nod and help Abby carry Erin. You rush down the long hallway and into the living room. You see the front door.  
“We’re almost out!” You say, full of hope, too much hope. You hear a thud and see Patty trip, sending Holtzmann flying. She hits the floor with a thud and suppresses a scream of pain.  
“What the fuck?” Patty yells as you see her lifted into the air.  
“P-Patty?” You mumble. Time seems to slow as you see her lifted almost to the ten foot ceilings and dropped. She lands on the glass coffee table and falls through it to the floor. “Patty!” You yell, a look of horror on your face.  
“It’s just a scratch! I’m fine baby!” Patty yells as she crawls back up. You don’t know if she’s trying to comfort you of herself. You see that her jumpsuit is torn at the shoulder and you can see the blood spilling.   
“Y/N, stay focused, it’ll be okay.” Abby says to you as she leans Erin against the wall farthest away from the mess.  
“It’s raining…. it’s pouring…” Holtzmann’s child voice says. The ghost is nowhere to be seen but you feel its presence near you, you feel his ice cold touch through your jumpsuit.   
“Holtzmann, if that’s you, it ain’t funny!” Patty yells from the other side of the room.   
“It’s... not me!” Holtmann groaned from where she was dropped.  
“Being dead is boring…”  
“Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!” You scream. You feel like you’re going crazy. You look around the room. Erin lays knocked out against the wall, Abby is trying to fight off something you can’t see, and the sleeve of Patty’s jumpsuit is being colored dark red and she looks like she can’t go on any longer.   
“I’m laughing… I’m crying…” The voice echoes through the entire house. You try to cover your ears but it’s inside your mind as well.  
“Shut up!” You scream over and over again.  
“All your friends are dying…”   
You glance at Holtzmann, she crawled into a corner, but she’s in a lot of pain. She’s having trouble breathing and her face has gone from pale to colourless. She could go into shock any moment.  
You’re losing. You’re losing your mind, you’re losing your stability, you’re losing the battle with the ghost. You can’t move. Your body is shaking uncontrollably.   
“Get the girls and out of here!” Holtzmann yells suddenly, interrupting the noise. You look at her and you see she’s holding a black sphere in her hand. The proton bomb. “The detonator is broke… this is the only way…” She moans.   
“Jillian! No!” You yell.  
“Go, damnit!” She yells. You’ve never heard her so serious. “It’s time I pay for my crimes.” Abby helps Patty to her feet.   
“Y/N, come on! We have to go!” She says, trying not to show emotion. You look at Holtzmann one last time.  
“It’ll be okay.” She says softly. You nod, tears filling your eyes and you get up and grab Erin. “Y/N, take this!” Holtzmann takes her necklace off her neck and tosses it to you. You catch it and run out of the house, tears falling down your face. You race to the Ecto-1 and place Erin against the car, clutching the ‘screw-u’ necklace in your hand. Abby is helping Patty in the passenger seat. You take off your pack and turn to face the house.  
“Y/N, don’t do it.” Abby says sternly.  
“I can’t leave her there alone.” You sob. You try to bolt back to the house, but Abby lunges at you, knocking both of you to the ground.  
“Stay still! You can’t go in there!” Abby says, trying to pin you down. You wriggle out of her grasp and bolt to the house. “Y/N!” Abby yells as you throw open the door. Holtz’s eyes go wide at the sight of you. You’re about to rush to her, but a blinding white flash consumes your vision and a loud bang causes a ringing in your ears. You’re sent flying back. The last thing you notice before everything goes silent and black is that it has started raining.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to my ghostwriter & dear friend!!!

You wake up in a strange and sterile smelling room. You look around groggily as your vision clears. Abby is sitting in a chair beside you, quietly flipping through a magazine.  
“A-Abby?” You say. You feel exhausted and speaking seems to take a lot of your energy. Abby looks at you in a mixture of surprise and relief.   
“You’re an idiot.” She says, her relief turning into anger. “When Holtz tells you to go, you go!”   
“Holtz… Holtz! Where is she?” You yell. You look around the room as if you hope she’s there. You realize more people are missing. “And where is Patty? And Erin?” Panic rises in your chest.  
“Calm down, they’re all here.” Abby sighs, knowing that there was no point in lecturing you. You had suffered enough and would continue to suffer from worry for a while longer. “Erin is in the room next door. She has to stay for the night too because she was unconscious for a while and Patty will be right back.” She says as she stands up and stretches. As if on cue, Patty walks into the room. The sleeves of her jumpsuit are tied around her waist. There’s blood on her top and a bandage on her shoulder. “How is she?” Abby says, turning her attention to Patty.  
“She’s… asleep.” Patty sighs solemnly. “It’s not looking so good.” You know they’re talking about Holtzmann.   
“Abby… please.” You beg. “Tell me what happened.” Abby gives you a numb look, her voice flat as she recalls the events like she were reading them.  
“When the bomb went off, the windows shattered and you had cuts all over your arms and face, you were bleeding pretty badly.” She pauses, recalling the blood spilling from your face and arms, the shredded pieces of jumpsuit and the idea that you might not make it. “So we first brought you to safety. Then, Patty and I went back in to look for Holtz. We found her in that corner.” Abby sniffs, her voice becoming strained. “She didn’t move and things had fallen onto her. She was bleeding too and-” Abby’s voice breaks. You know she is trying to be strong, but the long night has taken its toll on her.  
“We didn’t want to move her so Abby stayed with her while I stayed with you and Erin until the ambulance came.” Patty interrupts, her voice sad but strong. Patty always has been the strongest physically and mentally.  
“Is Jillian going to be okay?” You press, desperately wanting to know.  
“She has two broken ribs, the doctors will probably operate on her leg later today. They can’t say anything about the damage that bomb did yet.” Patty replies.  
“But she'll be okay, right? She's always okay!” You say, tears filling your eyes. You sound like a child, too innocent or too stubborn to realize the truth.   
“We should all try to get some sleep.” Abby sighs, trying to get your mind away from Holtzmann.  
“No, I want to be with her!” You say sternly.   
“You need to stay here and rest.” Patty says sternly.  
“I need to see Jillian.” You say, mocking her tone. You force your body to get up. Your legs can barely carry your weight but you don’t care. You lean on the pole your IV is on to keep you from falling on your face.   
“She's fine, you need to rest.” Patty argues. You stare her down before trying to move again. When you do, Patty walks up to you, picks you up, and sets you back in the bed. “I said no.” You glare at her.   
“We’re going back to the firehouse, but we’ll be back in a few hours. We’ll bring clothes for you and Erin.” Abby sighs as she walks over to you. She takes your hand and gives it a squeeze.  
“It'll be okay, I promise, baby girl.” Patty says softly.  
“Yeah, sure.” You mumble in reply. “See you in the morning.” They give you a worried look before quietly leaving. You wait a few minutes to make sure they're gone, as soon as you're sure, you get out of your bed again, still leaning on your IV, but not as much. Something gray sticks out from the white walls in the corner of the room. You see a plastic bag thrown on a chair by the window. You open it and take out your jumpsuit. It’s torn in several places and covered in splatters of ectoplasm and large circles of blood, your blood. You run your fingers along the patch that has your name on it and think about how excited Holtzmann was to give it to you. You take a deep breath, set the jumpsuit down, and slowly make your way through the empty hallway. You don't know where you're going, you just go where it feels right to go. You glance in each room until you see her towards the end of the hall. You hardly recognize her. She’s surrounded by machines. The steady beeping of a heartbeat is what catches your attention first, followed by the rhythmic hissing of a machine breathing for her. You slowly walk into the room and to her side. You desperately want to touch her face and hold her hand, but you're too afraid of disrupting one of the wires connected to her body.  
“She’ll get through it.” Someone quietly says from behind you. You jump and turn around to see Erin. She’s wearing a bathrobe and she’s also connected to an IV. A white bandage covers the top of her head. You turn your attention back to Holtzmann.  
“What if she doesn't?” You can't get past how frail and broken she looks. She's pale, almost like she's not alive. But in a way, she's not. If it weren't for the machines surrounding her, she wouldn't be alive.   
“You really like her, don't you?” Erin changes the subject. She doesn't want to think about it either. You look at her as tears come to your eyes. She walks over to you and wraps her arms around you. She lets you cry on her shoulder. The pain you feel from seeing her like this hurts more than any of your injuries.  
“I-I do. From the moment I met her, I-I just do.” You reply, feeling exhausted. You notice your face feels sticky when you remove it from Erin’s shoulder. A spot of blood has stained her robe. “I'm s-sorry, I ruined your robe.” You whisper. One of the cuts on your cheek had opened up.  
“It's okay, let's get a nurse to help you.” She says slowly as she watches hot blood run down your cheek. “Nurse!” Erin call out to the nurse’s station. Two women rush into the room and take the two of you away, separating the three of you once again. One nurse leads you to your room, obviously irritated at you, and cleans the wound again. When you’re back in bed, the nurse takes out a small bottle of liquid.   
“Please, don’t sedate me. I promise I’ll stay here! I don’t want to be asleep when Holtz wakes up.” The nurse hesitates for a moment but puts the bottle back. You breathe a sigh of relief.   
“We’re moving Ms. Gilbert’s bed to this room so you’ll have some company.” The nurse says after a moment. You know she actually means that you’ll have someone to keep an eye on you so she doesn't have to. She pours you a glass of water and sets it on the nightstand before she leaves to get Erin. You take a sip from the glass and you spot something that was hidden behind it. You put the glass down and take the object in your hand. Your fingers follow the metal circle, screw, and cutout ‘U’ from Holtzmann's necklace as tears start falling again.  
“You've gotta be okay.” You whisper. “You just gotta.” You clasp it in your hand and turn on your side. As you close your eyes, you can still hear Holtzmann screaming, telling you that have to go. Every time you close your eyes, you see the stunned look on her face.   
You must have fallen asleep at some point, because when you wake up again, the other girls are already back and Erin is asleep in the bed next to yours. “What time is it?” You ask groggily as you sit up.  
“It’s time you start to listen to us.” Abby replies curtly. “What were you thinking, wandering around in your condition? You could have hurt yourself even more.”  
“My condition?” You say as your furrow your brow. All you knew was you got cut up.   
“Yes, dumbass, you got stitches like all over and a couple of ‘could be serious if you do too much before they heal’ things going on.” Patty snaps.  
“I just wanted to see her.” You’re whisper, still holding the necklace.   
Abby sits next to you on the bed. “I know.” she sighs. There’s a knock on the door and an older man in a white coat walks in the room. The noise wakes up Erin.   
“Ah Ms. Y/N, Ms. Gilbert, good to see you awake.” The doctor smiles as he walks in the room. “Ms. Gilbert, I’m happy to inform you that you can leave the hospital this evening. We just have to finish some paperwork.” The doctor turns to you. “You’ll have to stay a few more days, I’m afraid.”  
“I didn’t want to leave anyway.” You mumble, looking at the necklace in your hand. “What about Holtz?” You ask quickly.  
“You mean Jillian Holtzmann?” The doctor asks. You don’t like the way his face turns serious all of a sudden.  
“Yes, she’s our friend.” Abby says. “Is something wrong?” The man flips through his papers.  
“The surgeon was able to set the break without an operation. If she keeps improving the next couple of hours, we will try to get her off the life support.”  
“Will she wake up?” You ask worriedly. You wanted answers no matter how painful they may be.  
“We still have to do some tests but we’re hopeful.”   
“Can I see her?”  
“Get some rest first. We will see how both of you are doing at the end of the week.” He says.   
“The end of the week?”   
“You and Ms. Holtzmann were exposed to an enormous amount of energy, we want to make sure it didn’t do any permanent damage.” The doctor explains before he leaves the room again.   
“No sane person runs towards a bomb.” Abby mumbles.   
“You’re the one who hired this crazy ass.” Patty replies.  
“And we’re glad she did.” Erin interrupts them. You smile weakly at her and turn to your side, you’re tired and it feels like your stitches are ripping you apart instead of holding you together.  
Abby and Patty give each other a worried look, knowing it wouldn’t be easy to keep eye on you.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to my dearest ghostwriter!!!

After many days of tests, being poked and prodded by nurses, lectured by Abby, carried to your bed at least twice a day by Patty, and ‘entertained’ by Erin’s lecture on ghosts for an hour every day, you are allowed to see Holtzmann. You work hard, taking most of your energy to walk the short distance down the hallway, but you were glad to finally see Holtzmann. She’s off the life support, she only has a tube for oxygen in her nose. You walk up to her and see she’s fast asleep.  
You sit down in the recliner in the corner of the room by her bed. There’s a magazine next to you, probably one that Patty left behind when she stayed with Holtzmann, you just want to start reading when you hear the sleeping figure next to you stir.  
“Holtz!” You smile to her as she opens her eyes.  
“I-I told you to go.” She says groggily.  
“I wasn’t going to leave you behind. I didn’t want you to be alone.” You say. “I didn’t want to be away from you.” You think to yourself.  
“Abby…” You move closer to her, speaking takes a lot out of her. “... must have been so pissed.” She smirks weakly.  
“Yeah she was.” You smile. You feel tears in your eyes, happy tears. You know there’s still a long way to go, but talking to her fills your heart with joy and for the first time since you entered that horrible haunted house, you feel like everything will be alright.  
“I told you she wouldn’t be in her room!” You hear Patty’s voice from the other side of the hallway and fast footsteps. “Y/N! How many times do I have to carry you back… Holtzy!” Patty laughs as she walks in the room and sees her friend awake, Abby and Erin are right behind her. “How’re you doin’ baby?”  
“I-I’m good.” She slurs, she’s fighting to keep her eyes open. You reach out and take her hand, ignoring the looks on the other women’s faces.  
“You can go back to sleep. It’s okay.” You whisper. She smiles before dozing off again.  
“You got the beast to sleep. Impressive.” Abby says as she crosses her arms. “But back to your room.”  
“But, Abby.” You whine.  
“Room.” Patty repeats as she picks you up.  
“I can walk.” You mumble.  
“We know, you walk everywhere except where you’re supposed to be.” Abby replies.  
“This reminds me of trying to keep two teenagers apart.” Erin says. You roll your eyes as you’re taken back to you room.  
The next day, you go back to Holtzmann’s room. You’re happy to see her without the oxygen tube and she’s smiling when you enter. She’s sitting up and she’s very much awake.  
“How are you feeling, Holtz?” You ask.  
“My leg hurts and my ribs are on fire, but I guess that’s the cost of being a Ghostbuster.” You want to sit down in the recliner but she gestures that you could sit on her bed. She lays her hand on your cheek and looks at the stitches.  
“You should have run.” Holtzmann sighs.  
“I did… but I came back.”  
“Almost as crazy as I am.” She smirks.  
“I think we’re about equal, miss bomb maker.”  
“It was a big poof, wasn’t it.” She grins, talking about the bomb. You roll your eyes.  
“It was a huge poof. It blew me out of the doorway of the house. How is something like that even legal?”  
“Who said anything about my creations being legal?”  
“I’m sorry I assumed you weren’t a mad scientist.”  
“I’m a very happy scientist.” She grins. She’s silent for a moment. “I heard there’s a ghost in the morgue” Holtzmann gives you a ‘we can’t resist this’ look.  
“What are you trying to say?” You ask, knowing you wouldn’t like the answer.  
“Maybe we should check it out.” You knew you wouldn’t like the answer. After the last bust busted you, Patty, Erin, and Holtzmann, you wanted to take a break from ghosts.  
“How? We don’t have any equipment, you can’t walk, and I barely go down the hallway.”  
“They put my stuff in that closet, see if you can find my watch.” She says, ignoring your complaints. You look through the bag. Holtz’s jumpsuit, or what’s left of it, looks as bad as yours. You take it out and set it on the chair. At the bottom of the bag, you find her watch and a can of Pringles.  
“I found it.” You say.  
“Give it to me.” She says, her eyes sparkling with excitement. You hand it over and she turns one of the top rings and a faint pink light lights up. She pushes a little button on the side and two small antennae appear.  
“Is that a PKE meter?” You ask surprised, but not too surprised. It is Holtzmann, after all.  
“It’s a prototype.” She smirks. “What else is there?”  
“Not much, some clothes Abby and Patty brought, toiletries… and this.” You show her the can of Pringles.  
“Yeah!” She grins.  
“Maybe you shouldn’t eat those, it might upset your stomach.” You say, not trying to mask your concern.  
“Who says I’ll eat them?” You look at the can in confusion, it feels heavier than usual. You look at it from all sides. “Go ahead, the closer you look, the less you’ll see.” She says mysteriously.  
“Please don’t tell me you have a proton pack hidden in there.” You sigh as you hand it to her.  
“Don’t be silly!” She opens the plastic lid and takes out a Pringle. “It’s a mini-trap.” She screws the can loose at the bottom, revealing a tiny version of the ghost trap. “Did you really think I eat that many Pringles?” Before you can answer she looks at the wheelchair next to her. “Help me into that.”  
“I don’t think we can do that-”  
“We can do anything, Y/N. We just can’t get caught.” You sigh as you struggle to get her into the chair. Being around her is like being connected to a charger. You feel more energized around her. You look at her, her hair's a mess and she’s wearing Snoopy pyjamas.  
“Snoopy?”  
“He’s cute. Shut up.” You grin as you help her in her bathrobe. When she’s dressed properly, you take another look at her, with a can of Pringles in one hand and a watch glowing on the other hand. Something isn’t right.  
“Wait, there’s just one thing missing.” You smile. You reach in your pocket and take the ‘screw U’ necklace and place it in her hand.  
“You held onto it.” She smiles as she slips it over her head.  
“Why wouldn’t I? I thought it’d be the last…” Your voice trails off, you don’t want to finish that sentence.  
“Don’t worry about it. I’m here. It’s okay.” She smiles to you. You nod. “Now let’s go before the nurse comes, or even worse, Patty.” Holtzmann’s smile turns into a grin. You walk over to the door and look out into the hallway.  
“All clear!” You whisper. You take Holtzmann’s chair and push her out of the room and head towards the end of the hall. You turn around a corner and push the wheelchair towards the elevator, praying no one will be on it when it arrives to your floor. It opens to an empty room.  
“You know, people have died on these elevators.” Holtzmann says matter of factly.  
“Shut up.” You say quickly. She lets out a laugh. You don’t want to talk about death, or hospitals, or anything in either of those categories. “Where are we going?”  
“The basement.” She says. You hesitantly press the button. The ride down seems long as the two of you sit in silence. You feel anxiety eating at your stomach as you descend farther and farther down. Finally, the elevator stops with a ding and opens up. You slowly wheel Holtzmann out of the elevator. The basement is cold, the brick walls and a flickering light on the wall make you question if this was a good idea.  
“What if this ghost is malevolent too?” You ask, trying to hide your fear. You couldn’t face that again, you weren’t capable of it.  
“Then you run. For real this time.” Holtzmann says seriously. You walk down a dark hallway, your hair stands on end as you travel deeper and deeper into the darkness.  
“It’s raining…” The child-like voice from the last bust echoes through the hallway. You stop dead in your tracks. You feel a chill running down your spine and your heart clenches. You want to rip your hair out and scream for it to stop. Your hands tightly grip the arms of the wheelchair. “Hey, it’s only me!” Holtzmann smiles. You stare blankly at her as memories of that night flash before your eyes, the voice echoing in your head and the images of your friends. Your whole body begins to shake. “I’m sorry, that was mean.” She says quickly, noticing the change in your demeanor.  
“Mean?!” You croak. “That voice will haunt me forever!” Your voice becomes stronger and louder until you’re yelling at her. “I still hear it in my sleep and in my dreams where I see you again with that bomb in your hand, hurt, bleeding… dying…” You trail off as tears fill your eyes. She pulls your bathrobe so you have to bend over to her, taking your mind away from the horror for a moment. She gently lays her hand on your cheek.  
“Thank you for coming back for me.” She whispers and softly places a kiss on your lips. You stare at her for a moment. “We can go back if you want.” She offers. You shake your head, snapping out of your blankness.  
“N-no.” You mumble. You force yourself to push her further until you reach the end of the hallway and enter the morgue. There are covered bodies lined up and it’s freezing. You feel frightened at the thought that Holtz could have been one of those bodies. Your breath catches in your throat when you notice the form of an old woman standing by a covered body.  
“It’s okay. She’s friendly.” Holtzmann says softly. The old woman smiles gently, like a grandmother to her grandchildren. She motions for you to follow. “Let’s go.” Holtz breaths. You swallow hard as you push her towards the ghost. She leads you to to an office and stops in front of a filing cabinet. It opens without anyone touching it. She gestures for you to come closer. You let go of the wheelchair and slowly walk up to her, still remembering Erin’s story of the “friendly” ghost of the Aldrich Mansion and your own experience. You look in the cabinet. In the top drawer there is a file with a man’s name on.  
“Eugene?” You read the sticker on the file. She nods and turns to one of the bodies. “I am not looking at what’s underneath the sheet.” You hiss at Holtzmann. “Dead bodies are your thing.” Holtzmann just smiles and motions for you to do as instructed. You stop at the body and turn back to the ghostly woman, who followed you. “Is he your husband?” She lays her hands on her heart and smiles sadly. “I don’t want to do this.” You sigh as you take hold of the sheet. You pull it away, revealing the face of an old man. You step away back to Holtzmann, you can't help but feel creeped out. Holtzmann takes your hand and pulls you close to her.  
“Look.” She whispers. Next to the body, another blue glow appears. You immediately recognize the man on the table. The woman and the man turn to each other. He gives her a loving kiss on her cheek. He hugs her and as the light glows brighter, they emerge into one. Before they’re gone, the woman smiles at you and closes her eyes. Slowly the blue glow starts to fade, along with the image of the old lady and Eugene. “Not all ghosts are bad.” Holtzmann breaths.  
“There’s a PKE reading down there, they’ve got to be here!” You hear someone say.  
“What if they’re hurt?” You recognize Erin’s voice. You turn Holtz toward the hallway you had entered from and wait.  
“They’re gonna be hurtin’!” Patty booms.  
“We’re in a hospital, you can’t kill them, they’ll just be revived.” You realise the first voice is Abby.  
“Uh oh, we’ve been caught.” Holtzmann smirks as you stand beside her, she holds your hand. The hallway light comes on and you see the three women walk toward you.  
“There you are!” Erin says, relieved as she hugs you. “Are you hurt?” She lets go of you and examines Holtz.  
“Yeah, yeah, we’re fine.” She rolls her eyes.  
“Did you find a ghost?” Abby asks as her PKE meter dies.  
“That’s isn’t important. We need to get you back upstairs, it’s freezing down here!” Erin says. She’s like a doting mother.  
“You’re coming home with us tonight, even if that means I have to drag your stubborn ass outta here.” Patty says to you as she pushes Holtz’s wheelchair back to the elevator.  
“Am I allowed to go home?” You ask.  
“If you wouldn’t have wandered off on an adventure, you’d know the answer is yes.” Abby says as she links your arm with hers. “And Holtzmann, I told you that you couldn’t turn the newbie into a little you!” She scolds the blonde, who pretends to ignore her. Abby continues to lecture the two of you all the way to Holtzmann’s room. Patty and a nurse help Holtz into her bed.  
“Say goodbye so we can go.” Patty says to you, like you’re a child.  
“See ya, Holtz.” You say meekly.  
“Can you do me a favour?” She whispers with a wink.  
“Of course.” You nod innocently.  
“Feed Bruce.”  
“Bru- The bat?” You ask.  
“No, the iguana. Yes the bat.” She grins.  
“I thought they told you to get rid of him?” You whisper.  
“That means nothing. There’s some food in my desk drawer for him.” You nod as you step away.  
“See you tomorrow, Holtzy.” Patty yawns.  
“You need to rest. That means you lie here and don’t do anything. No scheming, no biting, no fighting, not smart mouthing, just sit there.” Abby says.  
“I’m not a child, Abigail.”  
‘You act like it.” Abby rolls her eyes. She turns to you. “Don’t think I’m not done with you!” You know it’s going to be a long car ride to the firehouse. 

Later that night, after you feed Bruce, you use Patty’s laptop and search for Eugene. You find a picture of him as a young man in an army uniform with a woman, a nurse. As you look closer, you recognize the woman as the ghost lady. You read the article underneath the picture and find out they met each other during WWII, but they got separated during the bombings. You feel your heart melt at their story and how the woman waited on him after she died. Abby walks into the room.  
“I thought I told you to get some re-” She cuts herself off. “Are you crying?”  
“No.” You wipe your face with your hands. Abby rolls her eyes as she sits next to you.  
“I'm sorry I yelled at you.” She sighs.  
“It's not that, it's the woman and Eugene!” She gives you a look. “The ghost in the morgue waited all those years for him so they could be together again! It's so sweet!”  
“Holtz once waited five minutes before taking your lunch to make sure you weren't going to eat it. Usually she doesn't wait, just grabs when you aren't looking.” You give Abby a confused look. She stands up. “Eugene, I think you've found your ghost woman.” She laughs.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the slow updates! A few personal issues kept me from writing but more chapters are coming!
> 
> Another special thanks to my ghostwriter for her patience and support!

“Holtzy! Are you ready to go home?” Patty smiles as she walks into the room, followed by Abby and Erin. You came to the hospital early to help Holtzmann pack her stuff. After almost four weeks of bed rest she can’t wait to leave the hospital and the staff can’t wait for her to be gone.  
“Hell yeah!” She grins as she spins her wheelchair around to face the girls.  
“I’ve got most of her bags packed already.” You say to them as you nod to a plastic chair with a few bags on it by the door. Patty gathers the bags in her arms.  
“I can’t wait to get back to my music and my lab!” Holtzmann says to herself. “I miss my babies.” You see a hint of mischief in her eyes. No one says anything to her.  
“What do you have left to pack?” Erin asks, trying to be helpful.  
“Just the stuff in the top drawer of the dresser.” You toss her Holtzmann’s favorite backpack. It has a galaxy background and it’s covered in puppies and kittens and other random objects. Erin nods and walks over to the drawer. She pulls it open and a group of spiders rush out.  
“Oh my god!” Erin yeps as she jumps away. Holtzmann lets out a cackle. “That’s not funny, Jillian!” Erin snaps.  
“How long were you collecting those things?” Abby asks, shocked at the sheer amount of spiders in a hospital.  
“A while. It helps if you have the right bait.” She winks.  
“And connections to a petstore.” You add as you roll your eyes.  
“You knew about this?” Erin asks.  
“No, but I know she has connections to a petstore and can get almost anything.” You shrug, unphased by the creatures at this point. Once the spiders are cleared out of the room and Erin disposes of any food Holtzmann left around the room, the five of you pile into the Ecto-1.  
“I want to drive!” Holtzmann smiles.  
“You can be glad that we don’t put you in the back with the proton packs!” Patty mumbles from the other side of the back seat. You sit in between them as Abby drives and Erin sits in the passenger seat. The ride is silent, but a comfortable silent. As Abby pulls into the firehouse, Holtz is ready to bolt out of the car if she could.  
“I can’t wait to see my lab!” Holtzmann grins as Patty sets up her wheelchair and you help her into it. She wheels herself towards the stairs and pauses. “I can get down the stairs, but I can’t get up the stairs.” You can practically see herself coming up with an idea. “I know how to fix that problem.” Her blue eyes sparkle.  
“How about no. We’ll help you up the stairs.” Patty says flatly as she lifts the small woman out of the chair and carries her up the stairs. You go to pick up the chair but Abby stops you.  
“I’ll get it, you shouldn’t lift anything heavy.”  
“It’s just a chair.” You mumble as you follow her up the stairs with Erin behind her. Patty and Abby get Holtzmann set up in her chair once again.  
“Finally back to work!” Holtz laughs as she pushes her chair towards the lab.  
“Hell no you won’t!” Patty says and grabs the arms of the wheelchair to stop her. “You’re gonna put those messed up ribs and broken leg on the couch.”  
“But-”  
“Yeah, your butt too!” Patty says. Holtzmann rolls her eyes as she wheels herself to the couch. You sit in the chair next to her as Abby, Erin, and Patty help her onto the couch. Erin and Patty go to their workstations and you and Abby sit by Holtzmann, you read a book and Abby types some documents on her laptop. Holtzmann stares at the ceiling for about five minutes.  
“I’m bored.” She says matter-of-factly. No one responds. “I’m bored.” She says a little louder. No one responds. “I’m bored, I’m bored, I’m bored, I’m bored, I’m bored!” She says. She pouts as she is ignored. Abby knew Holtzmann would pull a stunt like this so she instructed you all to ignore her when she did. Holtzmann looks at you all and gets an idea. She lets out a bone chilling scream. Abby drops her laptop and you drop your book. Erin jumps up from her chair and Patty throws her book down on the table.  
“What’s wrong?” You ask, alarmed at her scream.  
“I’m bored.” Holtzmann says flatly.  
“I could kill you. That’s not cute, Jillian Holtzmann!” You scold her.  
“But I’m bored! I want to play with my babies!”  
“Watch some TV.” Abby suggests.  
“Noooo… I’m so booooored.” Holtzmann whines louder. This continues for an hour and a half before Abby finally gives up.  
“Okay, we’re off! Have fun with her!” Abby growls as she, Erin, and Patty walk down the stairs, leaving you with Holtzmann.  
“I’m so boo-”  
“Holtzmann, please!” You get up from your chair and look angrily at her. You take a peek over the railing of the stairs to make sure Abby and the others are nowhere to be seen. “All clear!” You smile and get her crutches. You make sure she has a good grip on them and help her up.  
“About time!” She sighs in boredom.  
“Are you okay?” You ask as pain flashes across her face.  
“Yeah. I’m good.” She breaths. You know she’s in pain but seeing how miserable she is, just laying on the couch, is just as painful.  
“One step at the time.” You say as you lay your hand on her back and stay by her side in case she falls. It takes a while, but she makes it to the lab. You help her to sit down on her stool.  
“I think they moved the lab further away than it used to be.” She breaths.  
“No one has enough time to move all of that junk in the exact place where you left it.” You roll your eyes. Holtzmann gives you a slight smile as she opens one of the drawers in her desk to reveal a collection of cassette tapes. She quickly pulls one out and pushes a button on her boom box, causing a small compartment to open. She places the tape inside and closes the door. She hits another button that causes her favorite 80’s music to fill the firehouse. You watch her move her arms to the beat of the music and do the best she can to dance around as she picks up her tools and begins to work on a project. For the first time you realise just how tired you are from everything that had happened since the demon attacked all of you. No matter how much you slept you still felt as though you had no rest. Watching Holtzmann seemed to be almost therapeutic, like a lullaby. You lie your head on the table. The cold metal feels good against your hot skin. Despite the noise from the boom box, you find yourself dozing off with a smile on your face.  
Around 4AM, you wake up. Everything is silent. There’s no boom box blaring or tools clanking.  
“Holtz?” You call into the silence as you open your eyes. You realize you’re the only one in the room. While your eyes adjust to the darkness, you also notice how quiet the firehouse is. It’s almost never this peaceful. There’s almost always someone making noise, be it Abby yelling at Benny or Erin typing at her keyboard or Patty turning pages in a book or Holtz making something explode. “Holtzmann?” You call into the darkness again. There’s no response. The lights in the lab are out so you know she’s not there and you know it’s impossible for her to take the stairs. “Holtzmann?” You hear a mean groan coming from corner of the room, like an animal. Since the bust you’ve become more sensitive to strange noises and you suddenly remember every story of every animal that Holtzmann brought back to the firehouse, although you have your doubts about the story of the crocodile. You look around in the darkness of Holtz’s workbench for any kind of weapon that you could protect yourself with. Your eyes settle on a metal pipe. You grab it and slowly walk towards the noise. Swallowing you fear, you take a few steps closer. The loud noise startles you again. “What the-?” On the floor between the coffee table and the couch lies Holtzmann, snoring loudly. “Holtz? Wake up.” You gently shake her shoulder.  
“Hmm… no Patty… I didn’t keep the tarantula.” She mumbles without acknowledging your presence. You make a mental note not to open any drawers or containers on her desk anymore.  
“Jillian, wake up.” You say a little louder. “Holtz!” Her eyes shoot open.  
“Hm? What? Ghost!” She yells confused and immediately sits up straight. The sudden movement causes pain to shoot through her body and knocks the air out of her chest. She hugs her ribs while she tries to catch her breath.  
“Jillian, are you okay? Why are you on the floor?” You ask as you fall to your knees on the floor beside her.  
“I was tired but I couldn’t get up the stairs to the beds so I wanted to sleep on the couch. But I fell off and couldn’t get up.”  
“Why didn’t you call me?”  
“I didn’t want to wake you up.” You sigh.  
“Let’s get you on the couch again.” You help her back on the couch. You make sure she’s comfortable and put a pillow under her leg. You feel she’s trembling so you cover her with a blanket.  
“Thanks.” She sighs. You notice how small she looks, not just because of her tiny frame, but also vulnerable, almost helpless.  
“No problem. Did you hurt yourself?”  
“I’ll be fine. Please don’t tell the others.”  
“I won’t.” You sit with her and wait until she drifts off to sleep again. With her big mouth and crazy personality, people sometimes seem to forget that behind those yellow goggles she’s only human. A wonderful, frail yet strong human. One you, by now, care deeply about.

As another week goes by, things slowly turn back to what you all call normal. Abby, Erin and Patty go on a few smaller bust but besides old plumbing, a mischievous cat, and a nest of noisy squirrels they don’t encounter any ghosts.  
“I’m bored!” Holtmann wails for the millionth time that afternoon.  
“Why don’t you help Y/N go through the mail?” Abby nods to the pile of mail on the table that had piled up since you and Holtzmann were in the hospital.  
“No thanks.” Holtz sighs as she stares at the ceiling.  
“That’s a lot for one person.” Patty sighs, trying to guilt Holtzmann into doing something safe and productive. “The rest of us are too busy to help.”  
“I’ll manage.” You sigh, catching onto to Patty’s plan.  
“Ugh, let me get some Pringles.”Holtzmann groans as she roll herself away.  
“She’s not coming back, is she?” You ask flatly after a few moments.  
“Probably not. It was worth a shot though.” Abby smiles. You go through all the mail that has come in these last weeks and the emails that need to be answered. As always, there are many letters from people who call the team frauds, which go straight into the bin, but also a cute drawing of a little girl.  
“Aw, Patty, look!” You show her the piece of paper. There’s a big green blobby ghost and the four Ghostbusters who shoot their proton packs. “That’s you!” You smile and point to the tall black figure. Abby and Erin hear you talking and join you.  
“That’s me, and this is you, Abby.” Erin smiles.  
“What about me?” Holtz shows up too, trying to carry several boxes of parts while struggling with her crutches.  
“I guess this is you.” Abby grins, pointing to the small, cross eyed figure with crazy hair.  
“Very funny. Don’t you have stuff to do or does the cripple have to do everything by herself?” She turns and hops back to her lab. You look at her and grin.  
“I’ll hang it on the fridge later.” You walk back to your desk and continue to look through the papers.  
“I thought you were just in your chair?” Erin asks.  
“I was.” Holtzmann shrugs.  
“So, what happened to it?” Patty asks. Holtzmann sets her boxes down and digs a large wheel out of one of the boxes.  
“It irritated me.”  
“You’re lucky you still have that chair you rescued from the dump two months ago.” Abby says to her. “You can’t just take apart everything that irritates you. We’d have no firehouse!” She sighs. “Come on, let’s dig it out of the closet.” You almost swear that Holtzmann did that to avoid going through the mail with you. After another hour of bills, insults, and filtering the most believable stories, one of the letters catches your attention.  
“You know that little toys store, near the square?” You ask Patty, who is sitting in front of you, typing away at her laptop. She turns her attention to you and nods. “Apparently stuff keeps moving there and there are loud noises at night.”  
“I’ve heard of these little creatures that torture people and make a mess.” Erin says as she joins the two of you.  
“Really? What kind of creatures?” Patty asks.  
“Kids.” Abby chimes in. You and Patty suppress a laugh. Patty starts typing. Only a moment later she finds an old article.  
“Here. The old woodcarver.” Patty says. “He got killed in his shop, right between the toys he made. The store was sealed after that and no one went in for almost fifty years.”  
“Until now. Y/N, who sent the letter?” Abby asks.  
“Mrs. Williams, apparently she’s the new owner and she’s cleaning up the place.” You read the email again.  
“She must have woken up something by moving the old stuff.” Erin mumbles.  
“What are we waiting for? Let’s go!” Holtzmann beams, seeming to appear out of nowhere.  
“Holtzmann, you’re not coming. It’s too dangerous.” Erin says.  
“I’ll be careful!” Holtz whines.  
“Do you even know what that word means?” Patty asks flatly.  
“I’ll stay here with her.” You say. “I want to avoid any evil ghosts and demons for a while.”  
“At least someone here has common sense.” Abby mumbles before going to the garage with the others to check the equipment.  
“I really wanted to go.” Holtzmann pouts when the two of you are alone.  
“Who says you’re not going?” You grin. “They leave at 8, the taxi will be here at 8:15.” You wink. A grin spreads across Holtzmann’s face.

That evening, while the sun slowly sets, Abby, Erin and Patty get ready to leave.  
“Will you be okay?” Abby asks when she walks back into the lab. Holtzmann is calmly sitting in her wheelchair, playing with some wires. She’s wearing her warm bathrobe and her legs are covered with a blanket.  
“Yeah. Y/N is here and I think I’ll go to bed early. I’m not feeling so well.”  
“Take care okay, we’ll be back as soon as possible.” Abby gives her a concerned look, waves, and leaves the lab, walking down the stairs to the Ecto-1.  
“Holtz?” You ask, a bit surprised to see her in her chair under the blanket and wearing her bathrobe.  
“Are they gone?” Holtzmann asks. You look outside the window and see the Ecto-1 driving off so you nod. She pulls the blanket off her, revealing the proton guns she hid underneath it. Two Pringle-traps are next to her in the wheelchair. She opens her bathrobe and you see she is already wearing her jumpsuit. The PKA watch is glowing underneath her sleeve. When you take a closer look, you see it’s one of her older jumpsuits, she has cut the lower part of her pant leg off so it would fit the cast on her leg. It’s only now you see she drew the Ghostbusters logo on the cast.  
“The taxi will be here any minute. We need to get you downstairs, get your crutches, and I have to change my clothes too.”  
“How will we do that? Patty’s not here to carry me and Abby said you can’t lift anything heavy.” Holz asks, realising the flaw in the plan.  
“You’re not heavy, you weigh less than a proton pack. I can easily carry you.” You shrug.  
“How? Bridal style? Piggyback?” Holtzmann winks.  
“Like a toddler. Just hop on.” You grin. You help her out of the chair and balance on one leg. “Hold on to me.” You say as you pick her up and move her light weight onto your hip. “Comfy?” You smile. She lays her head on your shoulder and makes the cutest baby noises. “I take that as a yes.” You laugh.  
“Take the firepole!” Holtzmann yells into your ear.  
“And drop you so you break the other leg too? I don’t think so.” You smile. Holtz rolls her eyes as you carefully you make your way down the stairs to the empty garage. “Wait here, I’ll be right back.” You say as you put Holtzmann down on Kevin’s old chair. You hurry back upstairs to get her crutches and the Pringle traps. When you come back, Holtzmann is, of course, nowhere to be seen.  
“Holtz!?” You call in a panic.  
“Coming!” You hear her yell from the kitchen. She moves the roller chair from the kitchen back to the garage. She throws another Pringles can to you.  
“What’s this? Another trap?” You ask when you catch it and study it closely.  
“No, just a snack.” She grins. “Come on, hurry. I don’t want to miss it!” You nod and throw the can back at her and quickly put on one of the older, spare jumpsuits. Hurrying and carrying Holtzmann had taken a lot out of your still recovering body but the adrenaline keeps you going. You hear the taxi pulling over in front of the fire house.  
“Holtzmann, are you ready for this?” You ask, trying to hide your fear.  
“Let’s go!”


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry it took so long to put up a new chapter. I've been sick and very busy and it kept me from writing. Thank you all for coming back for this new chapter. I hope you'll enjoy reading it!
> 
> Special thanks to my ghostwriter!!!

The cab drops the two of you off in front of the toy store. You quickly take Holtzmann’s crutches and backpack and help her out of the cab. As she puts her weight on you, pain runs through your body, causing you to almost drop her.  
“Easy, I'm precious cargo!” Holtz smiles.  
“Yeah, that's not how I'd describe it.” You say through clenched teeth as you hand her the crutches.  
“You okay? Maybe you should head back.”  
“No, I'm fine.” You sigh, ignoring the throbbing in your side.  
“Let's see what's going on in there.” Holtzmann smiles as she attaches the proton guns and mini traps on her belt. The two of you go quietly into the toy store. Holtzmann, of course, finds a rolling chair and uses it as her transportation instead of her crutches.  
“That creepy ass doll is looking at me.” You hear Patty say a few aisles away. The two of you quietly head toward them, staying on the opposite side of the long shelf of porcelain dolls. You notice she's looking at a doll with a green dress and red hair.  
“Patty, focus!” Abby sighs, you can tell she's wishing Patty hadn't brought up how creepy the dolls are. She tries to shake off the feeling that someone was really watching them, unaware that it was you and Holtzmann.  
“Come on, guys, they're just plastic.” Erin says, poking one of the dolls. It teeters and falls to the floor, it's face shattering. Holtzmann covers her mouth to suppress a laugh. “Glass. They're just glass dolls.” She mumbles, correcting herself. Abby lets out a laugh, causing Erin's face to turn red from embarrassment. The tension seems to fade for a moment as they travel a little farther down the isle of dolls. You quickly grab the doll Patty commented on and hand it to Holtzmann. She gives you a curious smirk.  
“I swear to ya it’s following me!” Patty whispers harshly as she glances back at the doll. The others look to see an empty place where the doll stood only seconds earlier. “Oh hell no.” Patty says. “Patty is out.” She says as she turns to leave. Holtzmann once again has to suppress a laugh.  
“No you're not, we have a ghost to catch!” Abby says, grabbing the back of Patty’s proton pack. “We can't do it with just two of us and we're already out Holtz and Mini Holtz.” Patty gives her a glare.  
“Mini Holtz?” You think to yourself.  
“Fine,” Patty huffs. “But if I get attacked by a doll, you owe me.” Abby rolls her eyes as they continue walking through the dark store.  
“Give me the doll so I can put it back.” You whisper to Holtz once the others are out of earshot.  
“I have an idea for this baby.” Holtzmann winks. She puts the doll in her backpack and an evil grin appears on her face. You decide the less you know about her plan, the better it will be for you in the long run. The two of you follow the girls from the opposite side of the shelve, staying far enough back so they can't hear you. Suddenly, the sound of small footsteps from the other side of the shelf startle all of you.  
“Did you hear that?” Erin asks.  
“I saw a movie like this once.” Patty says. “Everyone but the damn doll died.”  
“No one is going to die.” Abby says to her. “Let's go investigate.” Abby walks back towards the sound of the steps. Suddenly, the dolls in front of her jump off the shelf.  
“I told you the creepy dolls were lookin’ at me!” Patty says, staring at the small porcelain army. You glance at the doll sticking out of Holtzmann’s backpack. It hasn't come to life somehow.  
“Should we help them?” You whisper.  
“Not yet. They can handle this.” She replies. The two of you watch the girls from the other side of the shelf. A doll with yellow hair and a blue dress runs up to Patty.  
“I’m gonna kick Chucky’s ass!” She yells as she kicks the doll across the store like a football. You hear it shatter in the distance.  
“You think we should help now?” You whisper harshly.  
“Not yet, follow me.” Holtzmann rolls down the aisle to the end of the store and stops in front of an old metal door.  
“What’s back there?” You ask. You hear Patty kick another doll.  
“Take that you glass bitch!” She yells as a crash is heard, followed by the sound of three proton packs being fired, dolls breaking, and the store being destroyed in the process.  
“The source of our troubles.” Holtzmann winks. You look at the door and notice a faint blue glow coming from underneath the door. You hear footsteps quickly coming from behind you. You and Holtzmann duck into the shadows to see Erin, Abby, and Patty race to the end of the store.  
“Is that all you got, little glass bitches?” Patty yells.  
“Stop antagonising them before more come.” Erin says, gasping for air. She looks around the store. It’s a big mess of broken shelves and toys. Marbles, stuffed animals, toy cars, wooden blocks and crayons cover the floor.  
“Uh, guys, I think the found the ghost.” Abby nods to the door. She reaches to pull it open when it flies open on it’s own, the door banging loudly against the wall. The three women slowly walk in and you peer into the room when they all enter.  
“That looks dangerous for a toy store.” Erin mumbles, pointing to a woodcutter’s bench in the middle of the medium sized room. Shelves of old wooden toys, dolls and toy cars line the shelves surrounding the sawdust and dust covered workbench. Underneath the sawdust, a blue glow lights up. It starts to swirl and slowly the figure of a man appears. You and Holtzmann creep into the room and hide behind one of the shelves, watching the figure carefully. The figure reaches out his sawdust arm and from behind Abby, tools fly off the workbench, into his hand. Abby shoots a proton beam at the ghost but misses. It counters her attack by sending a wave of nails towards her, knocking her proton wand out of her hand but leaving her unharmed. The figure then looks at Erin, who stares at it, frozen in panic.  
“Erin!” Patty yells as a doll from one of the shelves jumps down on her head.  
“That ain’t fair, man.” Patty says to the ghost as she aims her proton wand at him. She hits him in the chest, causing him to let out a screech of pain. Patty reaches for a ghost trap button on her belt as she moves closer to the ghost, unaware of the toy car at her feet. She steps on it, looses her balance, and falls, shutting off the proton beam in the process.  
“Holtz, we should help now.” You whisper. Erin frees the doll from her hair and throws it at the ghost. It goes through him and shatters when it hits the floor. The ghost looks at her angrily as she prepares her proton pack.  
“Yeah, we should.” Holtzmann mumbles casually. The ghost prepares to charge at her but suddenly his attention is drawn by a can of Pringles slowly rolling towards him. With a click, it pops open, revealing the mini trap. The room lights up when it opens up and sucks the ghost inside. After one last schriek the trap closes again. There’s silence as Abby, Patty, and Erin look around the now silent room.  
“I didn’t set off a trap. Did y’all?” Patty asks. Abby picks up the can of Pringles.  
“Holtzmann! I know you’re in here!” Abby yells.  
“Do you think she’s happy to see us?” Holtzmann whispers to you with a smile.  
“Get your ass out here!” Abby yells again.  
“I don’t think so.” You mumble as you roll her out of your hiding area.  
“You too? Why am I not surprised?” Abby sighs when she sees you.  
“What the hell is wrong with the two of you? Y'all could have gotten seriously hurt!” Patty yells.  
“But we didn't.” Holtzmann winks.  
“Holtz, shut up.” You hiss. “You're only going to make it worse.”  
“It'll be fine.” Holtzmann smiles as she playfully pushes you away, reminding you of the pain in your side. You flinch and let out a gasp.  
“You hurt yourself, didn't you?” Abby says.  
“I'm fine, it's nothing.” You reply. I probably just pulled something picking up Holtz.” You reply.  
“You picked up Holtz? She's like ten times as much as you're supposed to be carrying!” Holtzmann gives Abby a look.  
“How big do you think I am?” She asks, pretending to be offended.  
“Without common sense you're about a hundred. With common sense, I'll let you know.” Abby replies flatly.  
“What's the big deal, Abby? We saved your asses.” You say to the woman.  
“Now you need to shut up before you make it worse.” Holtzmann says to you.  
“Let’s do a final sweep of the building, make sure there are no more of those gremlins around.” Patty says, trying to stop the fight.  
“Patty is right. It's late and we're all tired.” Erin chimes in. Abby gives you and Holtz a glare as she turns away from you and walks out of the room. The five of you quietly make sure there are no other spirits haunting the store or anything deadly left out. Once it has been determined that the destroyed store is free of ghosts, you all gather at the entrance.  
“Everything clear?” Abby huffs, still infuiated.  
“Yeah.” You all mumble, hoping no one, mostly Holtzmann, says something stupid to cause Abby to yell again.  
“Let’s go.” Abby sighs.  
“That is so cute!” You stop to look at a small plush on the shelf you hadn’t noticed before.  
“You have a thing for rabbits?” Holtzman asks, picking up the plush.  
“Let’s go!” Abby says irritatedly. You reluctantly walk out of the store, Holtzmann pauses and wheels herself behind you. Patty picks her up as she reaches the door and carries her out to the Ecto-1.  
You get on the backseat of the Ecto-1 and Patty helps Holtzmann sit next to you. She has a big smile on her face and you can’t help but feel frightened. You have no idea why she is so happy while she’s in trouble, or what she did to make herself so happy. She moves her hand to one of the pockets on her thigh and opens it, two white fluffy ears pop out. You smile at her and she gives you one of her signature winks, those winks that make you melt. The ride to the firehouse is silent with several glares from Abby through the rearview mirror. 

Back at the firehouse, Abby, Erin, and Patty unload the Ecto-1 without saying a word while you and Holtzmann are made to sit and watch.  
“Baby, can you look at my proton pack sometime? I think the aim is off.” Patty tries to break the tensed silence.  
“Sure, just put it in the lab, I’ll fix it tomorrow.” Holtzmann mumbles, not even trying to make a sarcastic or dirty comment.  
“Erin, Patty, we’ll see you tomorrow.” Abby says as she walks up the stairs, still in her jumpsuit.  
“I’m going to get a cup of tea before I go.” Erin says, not getting that it was her cue to leave.  
“You can have tea at home.” Patty says, getting the hint better than Erin.  
“I guess I could, I mean I don’t have-” Erin begins to say.  
“Just make it at home.” Patty whispers gently.  
“O-okay.” Erin mumbles as she hangs her jumpsuit up in her locker.  
“Good girl. I’ll go with you and we can pick out some tea from that book store.” Patty says. “Goodnight and good luck you two.” She says to you and Holtzmann.  
“Thanks, Patty.” You sigh. You help Holtzmann up the stairs and you feel her putting more weight on your shoulder. She doesn’t say it out loud, but you can see it in her eyes that she’s exhausted. The two of you slowly make your way up the stairs to find Abby, leaning over her desk and staring at the Pringles mini-trap. “Abby, we-”  
“It’s been a long day. Goodnight, Y/N.” Abby calmly interrupts you. You can still hear the anger in her voice. Anyone, except maybe Erin, could tell she’s furious. You look at Holtz and she nods at you.  
“Okay… goodnight, Abby. Goodnight, Holtz.” You mumble and walk up the stairs to the beds. You feel like a child being sent to her room. You know Abby and Holtzmann are going to start yelling as soon as they think you’re out of earshot. You close the bedroom door behind you and lay down in bed. Downstairs, you can hear Abby yelling at Holtzmann.  
“... you could have got hurt badly. Again! You have a great brain but it’s about time you use it! What were you thinking calling a taxi and taking that equipment. And our receptionist!”You hear Abby yell loudly, her anger bursting through her tired and stressed out emotions.  
“She’s a Ghostbuster!” Holtzmann yells back.  
“She’s in danger with you around! She already got hurt when she ran back to you.” You feel a nasty sting of guilt, hearing Holtzmann get blamed for your stubbornness. They continue to yell at eachother, bickering like parents on the verge of divorce. You never heard them fight before, never anything more than playful banter. You crawl out of bed again and walk down the stairs quietly. Abby goes quiet when she notices you on the bottom of the stairs.  
“Abby, Holtzmann didn’t ca-” You speak up.  
“Listen!” Holtzmann interrupts you and gives you a threatening look. “I didn’t listen when Y/N tried to stop me. I shouldn’t have called that taxi and made her go with me.” She says sternly. Abby looks at the both of you and rubs her temples, trying to dispel a headache that had begun to form.  
“I’m going home to get some sleep.” She sighs. “I suggest you two do the same.” Without another word, she walks down the stairs. You can hear her put up her jumpsuit and walk out the firehouse doors.  
“Are you sleeping on the couch or do you want me to help you get up the stairs?” You ask quietly once Abby leaves.  
“I’ll stay here. I don’t want you to hurt yourself again.” Holtzmann mumbles. You feel the tension in the air and can’t help but feel uncomfortable. She takes her crutches and hops towards the couch. She unzips her jumpsuit and tries to wiggle out of it, but she flinches and she brings her hand to her ribs. You rush to her and without saying a word, you help her to take her jumpsuit off. She’s only wearing a tank top and a pair of boxers underneath and shivering from the cold room. You cover her up with a blanket Erin keeps by her desk because she’s always cold.  
“I’m sorry I got you in trouble. I heard Abby yell at you.” You mumble once Holtzmann is settled.  
“She’s the mother hen of the team, it’s what she does.” Holtzmann shrugs.  
“Why did you do that?” You can’t help but ask.  
“What?”  
“Stepping up, taking the blame.”  
“That’s what people do for each other when they…” She cuts herself off.  
“What?”  
“Never mind... I’m glad we caught that ghost.” Holzmann says with a slight smile. You nod.  
“Goodnight Holtz.” You bend over and kiss her on the cheek, right next to her mouth. Suddenly you realize what you did and you’re as stunned as she is.  
“Goodnight, Y/N.” Holtz laughs a little.


End file.
